November 27, 1895.] 



Garden and Forest. 



475 



Insects attack all the foreign Roses, with the exception, 

 perhaps, of the Japanese R. rugosa, and it is not practica- 

 ble to use them, therefore, except in small numbers or in 

 gardens where the}' can be carefully watched and syringed 

 as soon as the insects appear. 



Berberis Sieboldii. — This Japanese species (see Gardex 

 AND Forest, vol. iii., page 249, fig. 38) is a good shrub to 

 plaiit when it is desirable to produce color-effects late in 



is the Green or Bull Brier, .Smilax rotundifolia, a native 

 climbing shrub with long, tough, well-armed stems and 

 large lustrous leather}' leaves which turn bright orange 

 and scarlet in the autumn. Few animals can penetrate or 

 break through a thicket in which the Green Brier is grow- 

 ing luxuriantly, and if any one wants to plant an impene- 

 trable barrier this is the plant to use where the soil is deep 

 and moist. 



De.\drobium formosum giganteum. — -The 

 ■ Dendrobiums are, perhaps, more diverse 

 in form and appearance than any other 

 class of Orchids. There is a very wide 

 range of beautiful forms between the 

 Densiflorum type and the group to which 

 the above variety belongs. This variety 

 is one of the finest autumn - flowering 

 kinds, with very large axillary flowers 

 produced singly from the upper parts of 

 the pseudo-bulbs. They often measure 

 six inches or more in diameter ; the color 

 is a pure white, with the exception of the 

 throat, which is orange-yellow. The cla- 

 vate pseudo-bulbs often grow to a length 

 of a foot or more and bear at the apex 

 several leathery, dark green leaves. This 

 is a tropical plant and requires considera- 

 ble heat and moisture. It will do well in 

 a basket in equal parts of peat, sphagnum 

 and charcoal, and should be potted rather 

 high. While growing, abundant watering 

 is necessary. Like most Dendrobiums, this 

 plant requires a good rest to mature the 

 bulbs when the growing season is over. 



Nephrolepis exaltata plu.-wosa. — The 

 Sword Ferns are among the most popular 

 plants for home decoration, attractive, 

 healthy and easily grown. They will do 

 well under almost any condition, provided 

 they are kept moderately warm and in a 

 partial shade. The beautiful fronds of the 

 old Nephrolepis exaltata are here divided 

 into numerous feathery segments, which 

 form large masses of greenery at the 

 apex of the leaf. The lower pinnte are 

 more or less furcate, while the upper 

 ones are cut out into numerous fringes. 

 Because of these heavy tops the foliage 

 is more spreading than is that of the typi- 

 cal form, and the habit is more bushy. 

 The peculiar thread-like runners, or sto- 

 lons, which form numerous young plants, 

 hang down over the baskets in which the 

 plants are generally grown, and add con- 

 siderably to their ornamental value. A soil 

 composed of fibrous peat and loam is the 

 best, and the plants show off to the best 

 advantage when grown in wire baskets 

 suspended from the roof or ceiling. 



Fig. 65 — Palm Cafion in San Jdtinto RIounluns — 5ce pj., 



the autumn. The leaves turn brilliant scarlet much later 

 than those of the Japanese Berberis Thunbergii and are not 

 affected by frost. This is one of the hardiest and most 

 beautiful of all Barberries of the vulgaris type, and it de- 

 serves to be much better known in this country and in 

 Europe than it is now. 



Smilax rotundifolia. — Another plant that deserves atten- 

 tion for the brilliant colors of its leaves late in the season 



Cultural Department. 



Notes on some Species of Cucumis. 



A MONG many species of Cucurbitaceous 



-^~^ climbers grown this past summer at the 



Botanic Garden, University of Pennsylvania, 



I^would mention a few species of the genus 



Cucumis as worthy of attention : 



Cucumis dipsaceus, referred toon page 457, Garden and 

 Fi iREST, is an annual stemmed vine, growing, as your corre- 

 spondent states, about six or seven feet liigh. The leaves are 

 two and a half to four inches in diameter, rounded or oblong- 

 reniforni ; stems, petioles and veins rough, with spiny hairs. 

 The plant derives its specific name from the resemblance of 

 the fruit to that of the genus Uipascus of an entirely different 

 order. The pulp has an intensely bitter taste and probably 



