384 



Garden and Forest. 



[August 6, 1890. 



perature of sixty to sixty-five degrees will be rapid and strong. 



Of course no collection of Ferns is complete without the 

 "Queen of the Maiden-hairs" (A. Farleyense), at least no col- 

 lection that includes warm-house species. This lovely Fern 

 is becoming so widely known that a description seems un- 

 necessary, and for that matter, written description almost inva- 

 riably fails to do it justice. Suffice it to say that it well deserves 

 the title of Queen, being unrivaled in delicacy, grace and re- 

 finement. The origin of A. Farleyense has been rather doubt- 

 ful, though it seems clear that it w r as first introduced from 

 Barbadoes, and the opinion has been expressed by those quali- 

 fied to judge, that it really is a cristate form of A. tenerum,am\ 

 it is claimed that seedlings from A. Farleyense have reverted 

 to the original type. I have never seen such seedlings ; in 

 fact, I can only recollect seeing a fertile frond on A. Farleyense 

 on one occasion. 



A. Sanctce Catherine? is also to be recommended among the 

 strong growers. It is a native of Brazil, and bears some re- 

 semblance to A. trapeziforme, though rather more compact in 

 growth than the latter, and its young fronds are more notice- 

 able on account of their pleasing bronzy pink tint. When 

 mature its fronds are dark green in color, with shiny black 

 stems, and they average about two feet in height. 



A. tenerum is also a desirable species, and seems to be quite 

 widely distributed. It is an evergreen warm-house species, 

 and produces graceful light green fronds from two to four feet 

 in length. The smaller fronds are also valuable for cutting, as 

 they last well in water. 



A. cardiochlcena, otherwise known as A. poly phy Hum, is one 

 of the finest of all when grown as a large specimen, and like 

 most of the large-growing Adiantums it requires plenty of 

 pot-room to develop its full beauty, and also an abundant sup- 

 ply of water at the root. It was introduced from South 

 America a number of years ago, but does not seem to have 

 become very common. It has upright foot-stalks, but droop- 

 ing fronds, which are of a pleasing light green color, and 

 usually three times divided. These fronds have been known 

 to reach a height of six feet, though this is unusual, and the 

 average is probably from two to three feet. 



A. villosum is another fine species from tropical America, 

 and though considered a warm-house plant, may be readily 

 grown in a temperature of fifty-five degrees. It has dark 

 green, bipinnate, glossy fronds about two feet in height, the 

 stems of which are covered with short brown hairs. 



Holmesburg. Pa. ___ j W. H. Taplin. 



Rose Notes. 



Madame Georges Bruant. — This fine Rose will soon find its way 

 into every good collection. It came through the past two win- 

 ters in fine style, though many varieties considered absolutely 

 iron-clad have succumbed to the trying extremes of tempera- 

 ture. How it will endure the test of twenty degrees below 

 zero remains to be proved. When its clusters of immense 

 dazzling white flowers open against its profusion of dark 

 foliage it is lovely to behold, and its odor is exquisite. The 

 open rose is very beautiful though only semi-double, for its 

 texture is like satin and its color like driven snow. It seems a 

 pity to note the weak points of a Rose so nearly perfect, but 

 (1) it is liable to mildew when there are very marked changes 

 between the night and day temperature, though not so weak 

 as La France in this respect; and (2) the long, delicately 

 pointed buds are apt to brown on the tips if met by heavy rains 

 followed by a hot sun. It might be called a " Monthly Rose," 

 so regularly does it bloom at intervals during the summer. 



Gloire Lyonaise is one of the very finest of the white Hybrid 

 Perpetuals ; not a whit behind the aristocratic Merveille de 

 Lyon or White Baroness, while in most situations it proves a 

 hardier and more satisfactory grower than either. The bloom 

 is a rich creamy white, a tint found in no other Rose of its 

 class. It is a beautiful upright grower, with the soft, leather- 

 like foliage of the strong growing Teas. The open flower is 

 very sumptuous in appearance, very lightly scented, but des- 

 tined to become our most widely grown white Hybrid Perpet- 

 ual. In common with all hardy Roses, its beauty is liable to 

 be despoiled just as it comes into leaf by the Rose pest; but 

 one or two good doses of hellebore will prevent this, and we 

 have only ourselves to blame if leafless branches or skeleton- 

 ized foliage meet the eye. 



Madame Plantier is an old favorite, which, though small of 

 flower and fine of foliage, should be found in every garden. 

 There are many uses for which this small, perfect white Rose 

 is especially adapted. It comes safely through all kinds of 

 weather and seldom fails to bring a lavish profusion of lovely 

 flowers. 



Polyantha Mignonette must become better known. A. row 

 forty feet long planted six years ago was a sight to be remem- 

 bered as it came into a mass of bloom the last of May. To the 

 uninitiated it was a puzzle; it was guessed to be everything 

 but a Rose, until a very close examination of the foliage settled 

 the question. Rosy pink and white were the great armfuls of 

 fairy roses, the single flowers an inch in diameter and in clus- 

 ters of forty and fifty. It blooms very perfectly until hot 

 weather sets in, when the roses blight in the bud unless a 

 good part of each cluster is pruned away. We may safely look 

 to this section for some splendid acquisitions for the hardy 

 Rose bed. 



The Moss Roses were, many of them, a disappointment, as 

 they all showed a tendency to open in a one-sided fashion and 

 without apparent cause, except our grand old friend Cristata, 

 which was in superb condition. The long buds of heavy green 

 moss opened slowly and perfectly to show a splendid double 

 rose of brightest pink, with that peculiar odor which, once 

 inhaled, can never be forgotten. 



It seems a great pity that many of the best Mosses, some of 

 the finest Hybrid Perpetuals and the Austrian Roses should 

 be of such difficult propagation as to make it next to impossi- 

 ble to secure them on their own roots. Perhaps the florist of 

 the future will find a means of rooting them more readily, 

 when we may hope to find them more generally distributed 

 through American gardens; for the American amateur insists 

 on having "own-root" plants, and, generally speaking, he is 

 right, for it is a fact that many grafted plants, that should have 

 been in their prime in 1890, were weakened by the freezings 

 and thawings of the winter of 1888-1889, to be killed outright by 

 the severe cold of the past March following a warm February. 



Richmond, Ind. E- G. Hill. 



The Brazilian Miltonias. 

 T^HE Brazilian species of Miltonia are not so generally grown 

 -^ in amateur collections as their beauty warrants. Never- 

 theless they are very desirable, growing freely and always 

 flowering well under proper care. They have the good qual- 

 ity, too, of flowering at a dull time of year, usually during the 

 months of August, September and October, when their large, 

 conspicuous flowers are very attractive, and they remain in 

 good condition for several weeks. These Miltonias can be 

 grown in a shady corner of the Cattleya-house, where it is pos- 

 sible to shade them at all times from the direct sunlight. They 

 should be grown in pots filled to within two inches of the rim 

 with broken potsherds, over which is placed a layer of fresh 

 sphagnum to keep the potting material from the drainage. 

 Equal parts of peat and live sphagnum moss suit them admir- 

 ably. Care must be taken to elevate them well above the pot 

 and not to bury the rhizome. While growing they require a 

 constant supply of water, and at no time of the year must they 

 be allowed to get dry. Syringing overhead morning and even- 

 ing is beneficial to them while growing. The following spe- 

 cies are those most generally found in cultivation and usually 

 prove the easiest to manage : 



M. cuneata, with flowers borne on spikes, several together; 

 the sepals and petals a rather dark shade of brown tipped with 

 pale yellow, the lip white. ( 



M. Candida, a very pretty species, bearing many brown, yel- 

 low and white flowers on each spike, one of the strongest 

 growers of the genus. Its variety, Grandiflora, is a decided im- 

 provement, having larger and much brighter flowers. 



M. Clowesii, var. major, another strong grower producing 

 long spikes freely, with flowers of good size. The sepals and 

 petals are primrose yellow, the ends of which are barred with 

 rich brown; the lip is white, suffused with purple. 



M. Morelliana, and its variety Atrorubens, decidedly pretty 

 plants, not so tall as those named above, but having larger 

 and more attractive flowers. M. Morelliana has sepals and 

 petals of rich, rosy purple, while the very broad lip is pale rose 

 with veins of a deeper hue. The variety Atrorubens is much 

 richer in color in all parts, but is rather a rare plant. 



M. Regnellii, with flowers on long spikes, sepals and petals 

 milk white, with a rosy colored lip. There is a distinct and 

 superior variety, Purpurea, with sepals and petals rosy white, 

 and the lip a splendid purplish crimson. 



M. spectabilis, small, but with extra large flowers, having se- 

 pals and petals pure white and the broad lip pale rosy white, 

 streaked with violet-purple. This is perhaps the most varia- 

 ble of the Brazilian Miltonias, and one of the best. 



Many growers grow M. spectabilis, and M. Morelliana, which 

 is really one of its varieties, on blocks of Tree Fern placed in pots, 

 but they rarely do as well when their small, wiry roots are ex- 

 posed to atmospheric changes and especially to dry air. 



Easton, Pa. H. Clinkaberry-... 



