436 



Garden and Forest. 



[XoVEMBER 7, iSi^S. 



Among the few plants and flowers which won first-class 

 certificates was one Orchid, the beautiful little Callkya 

 porphj'riles, supposed to be a natural hybrid, but be- 

 tween which species I cannot &■&]'. It is a small grower, 

 with slender pseudo-bulbs from six to eight inches high, 

 carr3'ing a pair of leaves. The flowers are about four 

 inches across, with rather narrow, purplish rose sepals 

 and a beautifully formed lip with rounded lobe of an in- 

 tense maroon crimson. It is an exquisite little (Jrchid, 

 and Baron Schroeder, who exhibited it, prizes it highly. 

 Messrs. Veitch, of Chelsea, showed, in their choice group, 

 a new hybrid Pitcher Plant named Nepeii/Jies Dicksn/iiana, 

 in honor of the late Professor Dickson, of the Edinburgh 

 Botanic Garden. It is a cross between N. Vel/cliu\ which 

 has large, handsomely-shaped pitchers with broad grooved 

 rims, and, in color, a pale green, and N. Raffleslana, the 

 well-known species, with its large pitchers boldly blotched 

 with blood-red on a green ground. The h)'brid partakes 

 of the characters of both parents, but is handsomer in 

 shape than either, as large as N. Veiichii, and more beau- 

 tifully marked than any form of N. Rafflesiana. It is, more- 

 over, a very strong grower, as most hybrid Nepenthes 

 are, and forms pitchers freely, which is a great recom- 

 mendation. A new Maidenhair Fern named Adiantuni 

 Walloni diffusuiii, was worthily certificated, as it is a most 

 elegant Fern and a robust grower. The original A. Wal- 

 /o;h' reminds one of a tall growing form of A. cuneatinii, 

 with small, deeply cut pinnae. The variety Diffusum dif- 

 fers in its larger fronds and more spreading habit. Both 

 this and the type originated with Mr. Walton. 



An early Chrysanthemum named Elsie was exliibited 

 by the well-known grower, Mr. Stevens, of Putney. It is 

 a large flower with narrow, reflexed florets, very full and 

 of a delicate straw color (some call it primrose), just such 

 a tint as every one admires. The certificate was voted 

 unanimousl)^ a good criterion of its merit. Another new 

 Canna, so bold and handsome in foliage, so brilliant in 

 flower, that it quite captivated many of the committee, 

 also won a certificate, but it was not so fine as some 

 that Messrs. Cannell have shown previously. Its name 

 is Ulrich Brunner, and it has brilliant scarlet flowers 

 with green foliage. It was shown by Messrs. Veitch. A 

 group of double flowered Begonias from Messrs. Cannell 

 was next passed upon, and \\\o were singled out as 

 worthy of certificates. One was I\Irs. Stuart, with flowers 

 of a rich, clear yellow ; the other General Chubet, of a 

 beautiful rose cherr}^ Both have a dwarf, sturdy growth, 

 the blossoms being of enormous size, very double, and re- 

 sembling double Hollyhocks more than Begonias. 



The other exhibits worthy of notice included a new 

 Rose all the way from Elsinore, in Denmark. The 

 blooms were much damaged, and several were of the 

 opinion that the variety was identical with La France ; 

 but as the blooms came through Mr. W. Paul, of Wal- 

 tham Cross, who, of course, knows Roses as well as 

 any one, the committee reserved their opinion until they 

 see good blooms early in the season next year. It was 

 named Hybrid Perpetual Denmark. Messrs. Veitch had 

 in their group some noteworthy plants, such as a basket- 

 ful of admirably grown and flowered specimens of Bou- 

 vardia President Cleveland, which is considered to be 

 the finest of all the scarlet single Bouvardias. Its color 

 is very brilliant, and the flowers and trusses are both 

 large. The same firm also ■6\\o\\qA Amasonia calycina [A. 

 puniced), a new stove plant with scarlet bracts, and long, 

 pale yellow flowers that are produced in continuous suc- 

 cession for several weeks in autumn and winter ; Ama- 

 ryllis Autumn Beauty, a hybrid from A. retiadata, with 

 large, pink flowers always produced in autumn when no 

 other Amaryllis is in bloom, and Begonia John Heal, a 

 charming little winter flowering Begonia, obtained by 

 crossing B. Socoirana and B. insignis. It produces an 

 abundance of rosy carmine flowers, which, in contrast to 

 the large, pale green foliage, is very beautiful. It is justly 

 looked upon as a first-rate winter flowering plant. 



Baron Schroeder's gardener, Mr. Ballantine, showed cut 

 blooms of two choice Orchids, Lulia Do}>i!niana awd Lalia 

 Novell}'. The first is a cross between Callkya Duwiana 

 and C. Exoiiicnsis, and it is strange that this mingling of 

 two Cattleyas should make the hybrid a Ladia, but so it 

 is. It has the large, bold flowers of C. Dowiana. lilac- 

 rose sepals, and a broad lip of the richest crimson 

 purple, not a trace of the characteristic golden tint of C 

 Dowiana being present. This is one of the rarest of all 

 hybrid Orchids, and very few plants of it are in existence. 

 C. Novelty is a hybrid between Callleya marginata and L. 

 ckgaiis. It is a good deal like C. porpliy rites, but the tube 

 of the lip is pure wdiite, which is a strong contrast to the 

 crimson lobe. Some plants of Adianlum Farkyense, said 

 to have been raised from spores, were shown by Mr. 

 Goldby, of Brierfield, Vt'ho states that he sowed the spores 

 on February 23d last year, and the sporlings appeared 

 soon after. If this statement is correct, it tends to dis- 

 prove the theory that this beautiful Maidenhair Fern is a 

 hybrid, and never produces fertile spores. 



London, October gth. "'• Goldling. 



New or Little Known Plants. 

 A White-Flowered Cattleya Gigas. 



THIS very interesting novelty, of which an illustration 

 of the only plant now known appears upon page 437 

 of the present issue, was collected by ^Ir. Francisco Tima- 

 notinv for IMessrs. Siebrecht & Wadlej', in Medellen, United 

 States of Colombia, during the autumn of 18S5, and has 

 been successfully flowered by them during the past sum- 

 mer in their Orchid establishment at New Rochelle. near 

 this city. The sepals and petals of the flower are pure 

 white, while the large, full lip is white, delicatel)' shaded 

 with rose, but preserving the two faint yellow eyes 

 characteristic of the species, from which this '^'ariet)' does 

 not otherwise differ. 



The plant has been added to Mr. F. L. Ames' rich col- 

 lection of Orchids, where it is now making a vigorous and 

 satisfactory growth. 



Cultural Department. 



The Propagation ot Conilcrs. 



MANY propagators of Conifers put in cuttings and do their 

 grafting between early August and October, but while 

 some succeed, many more tail. My e.xperience is that tlie 

 very changeable weather of our late summer and early 

 .autumn renders this work most diiiicult then, because greater 

 attention is needed to keep the degree of temperature and 

 moisture uniform than it is later iu the season. Many Coni- 

 fers, it is true, will root at any season, but it is nearly 

 impossifile to persuade others to root during the liot weather. 

 \n the winter season the plants seem to have stored up all the 

 material ready for use in making a new growth, so that they 

 are in better condition to form callus and roots than at any 

 other time. There is also less evaporation under g-lass in 

 winter than there is in hot weather, and by artificial means 

 we can control the conditions of heat and moisture more 

 easily. In fact, the more steady the cold weather in winter, 

 the better is the chance of success in propagating hard- wood 

 plants. 



A green-liouse is essential lor the propagation of ever- 

 greens in winter as far north as Boston. The cuttings can be 

 put in an ordinary propagating bed, in pots or in bo.xes. For 

 large lots, I prefer shallow boxes, and for smaller quantities 

 pots are chosen, since they can be more conveniently re- 

 moved without disturbing the roots. In any case, good 

 drainage must be secured with potsherds or coarse gravel 

 covered with moss or peat to keep the sand from sifting 

 through. The cuttings should l)e collected, if possible, on 

 mild days, and when not fro/en. If not used at once, they 

 can be kept in damp moss, in a cool place, for a week or more 

 without injury. If the cuttings must be gathered in freezing 

 weather they should be liuried in damp moss for several hours 

 before they are used. The cutting should lie made with a 

 heel, using a sharp knife, and it should be from two to four 

 inches lono- in most Evergreens. As soon as made, the cut- 



