200 



Garden and Forest. 



[April 24, i? 



sdIuMc form. In an experiment made with Sulphate of Pot- 

 ash, Muriate of Potasli, Nitrate of Soda, Nitrate ot I'otash, Sul- 

 phate of Ammonia, Bone-black, Urietl Blood and seven other 

 mixed fertihzers, it was found that the Nitrates of Soda and 

 Potash, applied to a soil lil)erally supplied with stable manure, 

 produced a vij^or of leaf that was much less injured than 

 where the other elements were used. 



The reason for watering- in the morning is that the Lettuce 

 mildew, like most plants of its kind, can only grow under con- 

 ditions of a close, moist atmosphere and a high temperature, 

 and if the watering is done in the mornmg, antl especially on 

 sunny days, the moisture gets dried from the leaves before 

 night, and the mildew is less liable to grow. 



In using evaporated sulphur it should always be borne in 

 mind that burning sulphur is qiuckly destructive to all plant 

 growth, and every i)recaution should be taken that it is not 

 heated so hot as to take fire, or that the kettle does not get upset. 

 Tlie lamp or stove should have a broad base or the Ivettle be 

 placetl on a tripod witli feet well spread. It should be placed 

 under the bench where it can be readily seen, but where the 

 clothes of a person passing by may not catch upon it and up- 

 set it. 



The vapor of sulphur also proved effective in cases of Grape 

 mildew and the leaf blight of Chrysanthemums. It routed, 

 too, the red spider, one of the worst pests of the green-house. 



Cattleya Lawrenceana. 



CIR RICHARD SCHOMBURGK, while exploring British 

 ^ Guiana during the years 1840-1844, was the first to dis- 

 cover this handsome Cattleya, which he mistook for C. Mossice 

 — a species which has only been found in Venezuela. For 

 many years collectors of various firms undertook perilous 

 journeys in search of this Cattleya, but all their efforts were 

 unsuccessful until as recentl)' as 1884, when it was rediscovered 

 in the Rorai ma region of British Guiana, growing along the 

 banks of the Kookenaam River among rocks and on the 

 trunks of trees. Although the introduction to cultivation of 

 this species is comparatively recent, it has nevertheless be- 

 come already one of the greatest favorites with amateurs and 

 horticulturists, who value it on account of the great beauty, 

 richness and distinctness of its flowers. The spikes have gen- 

 erally from three to five flowers, and sometimes more, each 

 about six inches across, with ol)long sepals, and elliptic, wavy 

 petals, varying in color from pale rose, to deep rosy-piuple, 

 the tips of the petals being usually darker. The funnel-shaped 

 lip is usually of a very rich crimson-purple, the intensity of 

 which renders it conspicuous at a great distance ; the throat is 

 creamy-white, lined with rose. The flowering season begins 

 in April, just when Cattleya Triance and its innumerable forms 

 are finishing, and lasts imtil C. Mossice and C. Mendelii begin 

 to bloom. 



Growing as it doesamongrocksand frees in its native home, 

 this species may be grown with equal advantage either in pots 

 or baskets, as the cultivator thinks sin'table, and placed in the 

 usual compost of good, hbrous peat, with a layer of clean 

 crocks underneath. It thrives best in a warm corner of the 

 Cattleya house, where the pots or baskets, as the case may be, 

 should be suspended from the roof in a position to allow as 

 much simlight as possible. During tiie growing season, that 

 is, early in the year, plenty of water should Ije given, and oulv 

 on certain occasions, when the rays of the sun may be con- 

 sidei"ed exceptionally jjowerful, should any shading be given. 

 Diuinghot days air may also f)e freely given ; but the instinct 

 of the cultivator must guide him in all these things. When 

 the flowering season is over, water shoidd only be given spar- 

 ingly, in fact, only just enough to enable the plants to retain 

 their plumpness. Shifting the plants at this time into a slightly 

 cooler house would be beneficial, so as to ripen the growths, 

 and encourage them to flovver freely when the season for 

 doing so comes round again. 



St. Albans, England. John Weathers. 



Roses for Out-door Planting. 



T N making preparation for planting or re-planting out-door 

 *■ Rose-beds, deep cultivation, good drainage and the liberal 

 ajiplication of manure well worked into the soil are essential. 

 Well-rotted stable manure is usually found the most satisfac- 

 tory fertilizer. In the planting of permanent beds of hardy 

 Roses it is generally foimd that plants on their own roots are 

 better than grafted ones, from the fact that the latter are more 

 likely to be winter-killed, unless they are grafted very low 

 down on the stock, so that the point of union may be entirely 

 covered with earth in planting out. If this is done die plant 

 will frequently send out roots from Uie base of the graft, and 



thus beconie more or less independent of the stock. If the 

 plants have been grown in a warm house they should be 

 gradually hardened off for the change. When the plants are 

 clormant, having been grown in a cold frame or some similar 

 structure, or merely heeled-in for the winter, it is well to plant 

 them out as early as possible, as plants in this condition re- 

 ([uire a little more time to become established than young 

 plants in active growth. 



To those who have not yet decided what varieties to plant, 

 the following brief list of well-tested Roses is added. Among 

 hybrid perpetuals are : 



Alfred Colomb. — A bright crimson descendant of General 

 Jacqueminot ; very fragrant and most desirable hi every way. 



Anna de Diesbach. — Yielding large flowers of a pleasing 

 shade of carmine. 



Eugenie Verdier. — Silvery-pink in color, large and of 

 beautifid form. An improvement on Victor Verdier. 



Fisher Holmes. — Deep crimson, and of good form. Con- 

 sidered liy many growers an improvement on General Jac- 

 queminot. 



General Jacqueminot. — Too well-known to need descrip- 

 tion, and still growing in popularity. 



John Hopper. — A free grower aiul profuse bearer of bright, 

 rose-colored llowers. 



Marie Baumann. — Carmine-crimson, a lovely shade of 

 color, and also of fine form. Very fragrant, and altogether a 

 charming Rose. 



Among Tea Roses, Bon Silene, Souvenir d'un Ami and 

 Marie Van Houtte are about the most satisfactory for out- 

 door culture. 



The best known Bengal variety. Souvenir de la Malmaison, 

 though old, still retains a place in the front rank of popular 

 sorts. 



Ill the foregoing list, pure white varieties have been omitted, 

 and this deficiency may be met by the addition of Madame 

 Plantier (Hybrid China), for early flowering, and the Hybrid 

 Noisette, Coquette des Blanches, for later blooms, the latter 

 being a very useful variety for summer flowers. 



A few Polyantha Roses will also prove a pleasing feature 

 among out-door Roses, with their abundant miniature blos- 

 soms. 



Mignonette, with flowers of a delicate, light rose color, and 

 Paquerette, pure white, are two of the best of this section. If 

 a representative of the Hybrid Teas is desired. La France is 

 decidedly the most satisfactory, but like most of its class, and 

 also the pure Teas, it needs some protection in severe winters, ■ 

 at least if planted in an exposed position. ^^, ^, ^ , ,. 



Holn.esbu.g, Pa. ^V. H. TapllU. 



Tulipa Turkestanica. — This is perhaps the earliest-flowering 

 species of this numerous family, coming in with the earliest 

 of spring-flowering bulbs. T. Turkestanica has pretty, yellow 

 flowers, which are produced as many as six on a stem. Our 

 plants have been grown in the open ground for several years 

 without any protection whatever, and flower annually. This 

 plant, as the specific name implies, is a native of Turkestan. 

 We are indebted to Dr. Regel, of St. Petersburg, for this and 

 many other interesting plants. 



Puschkinia scilloides, or Striped Squill, is a remarkably pretty 

 little plant from Asia Minor, mucfi resembling a Scilla in size 

 and hal)it. The flowers are white, and are produced in dense 

 racemes, each of the divisions of the perianth being prettily 

 striped on both sides, with blue down the centre. When 

 planted with Scilla Sibirica, P. scilloides has a charming effect. 



Chionodoxa Lucilise has been sufficiently catalogued to need 

 no descriijtion, but too much cannot be said in its praise as a 

 hardy spring-flowering bulb. We find the bulbs do not deterio- 

 rate, but come stronger year after year, and no niatter what may 

 happen the plant, even to being plowed under, the pretty, 

 starry flowers are sure to appear at their appointed season. 

 All the above thrive best in a sandy soil, where there is no fear 

 of too much moisture during their resting season, and the best 

 results are obtained when the bulbs are lifted every second or 

 third year and re-planted, adding some well-decayed manure 

 to the soil before doing so. 



Anemone Pennsylvanica.— For naturalizing in semi-wild 

 places there is no Anemone so suitable as this fine, native spe- 

 cies, not excepting the cosmopolitan A. neinorosa. We re- 

 member to have seen A. Pennsylvanica holding its own 

 among tall grass in an open, dry spot by the road-side. The 

 flowers are of the purest white, rivalling the Japan Anemone 

 in size and purity. Owing to the rapidity with which this plant 

 spreads it is not to be recommended for the flower-border 

 proper, but should be planted where it may have plenty of 



