96 



FLOWERS IN CALIFORNIA. 



ing of the cypripedium is difficult, but, on the contrary, 

 nothing is more simple. 



The flower of the cypripedium has two 

 sepals, a dorsal, or superior (Fig. 5), and an 

 inferior, which, in reality, is formed by the 

 union of two sepals. The dorsal, or upper 

 sepal, is oblong, oval and in the most beau- 

 tiful part of the flower. Its color varies from 

 pure white to a purple black, passing through 

 red and yellow. The lower sepal is rather 

 uninteresting, as it is hidden by the lip ; in 

 some selenipediums it is quite long, but in 

 most cypripediums it is lanceolate and gen- 

 erally of a greenish color. 



The petals are also two in number, for 

 the lip may be considered as a distinct organ. 

 They are elongated, rhomboid in form, and Fig. 4. Ca- 

 are sometimes very large. Their color is tasetum. 

 very variable. 



The labellum, or lip, is an organ in^the form of a 

 sac, having three lobes. The lateral lobes are hardly 

 visible, and the median lobei 

 which is very much devel- 

 oped, forms the extremity 

 of the sac. 



All the reproductive or- 

 gans are situated on the col- 

 umn, as in other orchids. 

 At each side of the column, 

 behind the stigma, there is 

 another. The pollen grains 

 are united in masses, called 

 pollinia, which are surround- 

 ed by a sticky liquid. The 

 third anther is rudimentary, 

 and its lower part has the 

 form of ■ a hollow shield. 

 This organ is called a stami- 

 node, and protects the stig- 

 FiG. 5. Erect Sepal of ma, which is situated direct- 

 Cypripedium. ly under it. The stigma is 



suspended from the column. 

 It is an ovoid plate, convex on the under side. 



Pollination must be performed during fair weather. 

 The sun is not indispensable, but the crosses succeed 

 better when they have been made under bright light. 

 With a lead pencil, or other convenient instrument, 

 carefully detach the pollinia and apply them to the 

 under side of the stigma, at the place where three small 

 lines cross each other. The 

 grains of sticky pollen adhere 

 to the convex surface and throw 

 out prolongations, which fertil- 

 ize the ovules contained in the 

 ovary. The ovary differs some- 

 what among the different gen- 

 era. In selenipedium, instead 

 of being unicellular, it contains 

 three cells. Fig. 6 shows the 

 ovary of a cypripedium, with 

 the numerous and minute ovu- 

 les at 0. 



The fertilized ovules grow, 

 and at the end of a few months, 

 according to the season, the 

 ovary divides into three parts. 

 The capsule is then detached 

 from the stalk and the seeds 

 dried, or better, sown immedi- 

 ately upon the surface of the 

 soil in a pot. The soil should 

 consist of a mixture of moss and fibrous earth, the 

 same as that in which a strong cypripedium is usually 

 grown. According to the best growers, seeds treated in 

 this manner do better than when sown in any other 

 way. They germinate very irregularly, and sometimes 

 the young plants do not appear for two years after sow- 

 ing, although they generally appear within six months. 

 The flowers usually appear during the fourth year. If 

 the parents have been carefully chosen, the curious 

 flowers that will be produced will fully repay all the 

 trouble that has been taken. — Georges Truffaut, in Revue 

 de P Horticulture Beige. 



[The definite and careful directions above given, to- 

 gether with the illustrations, ought to make it possible 

 for any careful operator to do hybridizing. — Ed.] 



Fig. 6. Ovary of 

 Cypripedium. 



FLOWERS IN CALIFORNIA. 



AMONG THE CHRYSANTHEMUMS. 



T WOULD seem difficult to choose 

 from among flora's treasures one 

 flower for preference, but some 

 enthusiast in the east, no doubt, 

 set the seal of approval upon the 

 " Golden Flower therefore, the 

 lily droops, forlorn and forgotten, the queen of the 

 garden is discrowned, and the chrysanthemum 

 rears its proud crest. Even in this land of perpet- 



ual sunshine, where all the year round flowers of 

 every known variety unfold their glowing petals to 

 the light of day, the craze is in full sway. 



For decorative purposes the chrysanthemum stands 

 unrivalled. It has no equal as a plant for bedding, and 

 may be massed in a single color, or grouped so as to 

 blend the colors artistically, with greateffect. One favor- 

 ite arrangement of this gorgeous flower is in the form of 

 a solid bank, training the rear plants of a large bed to a 

 height of six feet or more, then gradually shortening 

 those in the front rows ; the plants should be set about 



