224 



THE GARDENERS' MAGAZINE, 



March 16, 1912 



WORK FOR THE WEEK. 



THE ORCHID HOUSES. 



CALAXTHES are among our most useful 

 wiuter-fioweriiig orchids, iiiey will now 

 have started into growth, and the earlier 

 tiowering sorts will need repotting. On no 

 account should the plants ever be allowed 

 to remain a second year in the same com- 

 post; for, however good it may now appear, 

 it will become in a most unsuitable condition 

 long before the plants have hnished their 

 -eason's growth. When the new growths 

 are a few inches high, and about to push 

 forth new roots, is the best time to repot. 

 Turn the plants carefully out of their pots, 

 and shake away the exhausted soil, cutting 

 back the old roots to about an inch in 

 length; these root stumps will assist in keep- 

 ing the pseudo-bulbs in position, until the 

 plants are established in the new compost. 

 Previous to repotting, carefully examine and 

 clean evu h pseudo-bulb. Large or small pots 

 mav be employed according to the require- 

 ments of the plants, and the uses they are to 

 be put to when in bloom. The strongest 

 bulbs sliould be potted up separately in live 

 inch and six-inch pots. The pots should be 

 clean, and about half-filled with clean 

 crocks covered with sphagnum moss. Hi' 

 compost should consist of peat and fibrous 

 loam in equal parts, from which all tlje fine 

 ])articles have l>een taken; add some sphag- 

 num moss and dried cow manure. Press the 

 compost moderately firm around the base of 

 the pseudo-bulbs, 'and fill to within three- 

 quarters of an inch of the rim of the pot, 

 thus leaving sufficient space for watering 

 and top-dressing. Warm the compost before 

 use. After potting stand the plants in a 

 light position in a house where the tempera- 

 ture ranges from (V3 to 70 degrees by night, 

 with a ri.se of 1(1 to 20 degrees hy day, and 

 give a light shading during the hottest part 

 of the day. No water should l>e given until 

 the roots are seen to l>e pushing into the 

 new compost, but a moist, warm, genial at- 

 mosphere is necessary during the whole of 

 the time the plants are making their growth. 

 W*hen each plint l>ecomes firmlv established 

 in its new compost, and is nicelv rooted, an 

 abundance of water may be afforded, w'ith 

 an occasional watering with weak liquid 

 manure. Tlie calanthes now in bloom, such 



C, Regnieri, C. Sanderiana, and oth 

 will also require repotting after the spikes 

 are cut and growth recommences 



PROPAGATION. — lliese deciduous cal- 

 anthes may be easily propagated by taking 

 off the old back-bulbs and th^ tops of the 

 new ones, ami placing them close together in 

 shallow pans upon a layer of fe*7)liagnum moss 

 in a warm, moist position, in the hottest 

 house, they will soon push forth growth, and 

 mav be potted up and treated as previoush- 

 a^v-ed. — J. T. Barker, llie West Hill 

 Gardens. 



STOVE PLANTS. 



MYKSIPHVLLUMS. 



Trails of 



these 



twining plants are much in' request for 



all 

 if 



table and other floral decoration^ 

 the year round. Last year's plant-, 

 shaken out and repot tt'cl now into Tin. 

 pots and grown in heat, will (quickly 

 throw up their stout basal shoots, when they 

 may be placed in the position they are to 

 occupy against a wall or partition in a warm 

 house for supplying trails for early cutting. 

 To form a succession to these, seeds should be 

 sown, and when the seedlings are two or 

 three inches in height put two or three to- 

 gether in thumb pots; given good cultivation 

 these will soon be ready for 48's, in which size 

 pot they may remain for one sear-on. When 

 grown in pots the trails are more compact 

 than when grown in a bed or border; there- 

 fore are better adapted for the use to which 

 they are generally put. Fine green twine 

 should be used for the trails to entwine them- 

 selves upon, as then, when cut, there is no 

 need to withdraw the string before use. As 

 the trails are cut, place a new string in ])osi- 

 tion to receive other gr<f\\ t lis, w h icli are 



generally abundant. Tlie two l>est to grow 

 are M. asparagoides and M. myrtitolia. 

 When well established give frequent applica- 

 tions of liquid manure 



TABLE PLANTS.— The most promising 

 of the young crotons, dracsenas, pandanus, 

 Panax Victoria. Abutilon Sawitzi, and the 

 like, that are required for table and other 

 decorations in the dwelling, should be selected 

 at an early date, and given special treatment, 

 to ensure symmetrical specimens, in 48-sized 

 pots as soon as possible. These should not 

 be crowded among the general collection of 

 stove subjects. 



PALMS.— In most gardens these indispen- 

 sable plants are much used in the dwelling- 

 house, and often they receive somewhat rough 

 treatment. Now is'^a good time to overhaul 

 the stock, repotting those that require a 

 shift and top-dressing others. For the most 

 robust growers use a compost of three pares 

 sand loam to one of leaf-soil, adding a little 

 decayed manure, sharp sand, and sifted mor- 

 tar rubble. Pot firmly, and leave plenty of 

 room for applying copious waterings. The 

 less robust varieties should be potted in a 

 rather lighter soil, adding plenty of finely 

 broken crooks and charcoal to keep it open. 

 A few small plants should be purchased at 

 this season to replace worn-out or overgrown 

 specimens. — H. T. Martin, Warren Wood 

 Gardens. 



THE FLOWER GARDEN. 



ROSES. — It is novV time to commence the 

 pruning and training of climbing roses, and 

 in doing this it is well to remove any dead 

 growths first by cutting them right out from 

 the base. The remaining shoots will need 

 careful thinning, as nothing is gained by 

 traniinsr them thicklv, but the older 

 branches that are showing signs of weakness 

 should be cut away, and young growths 

 trained in their places. Endeavour to ar- 

 range the growths so as to cover the amount 

 of space at disposal evenly, and when dealing 



with very strong shoots it is advisable to 

 shorten them back to about one-third their 

 length. If it is desirable to retain the 

 branches full length of any particular 

 variety, they can be induced to break into 

 growth and flower all along their stems by 

 l)ending them over and fastening them to 

 pegs in the ground, afterwards securing 

 them in their permanent places. Tea roses 

 that have been protected during the winter 

 should now have their protecting material 

 removed, but it is well to defer pruning 

 them until a little later. Hybrid perpetuals 

 can be dealt with at once, and it is well to 

 cut back newly planted roses to within 

 about throe buds of the base. 



GLADIOLI AND MONTBRETIAS.— Tlie 

 present is a good time to plant these, and 

 whether they are grown in tlie mixed flower 

 borders or in beds bv themselves, thorouofh 

 cultivation of the soil is necessarv if thev are 

 to be a success. They look well in the mixed 

 border planted in groups of one colour. 

 Cover them with four inches of soil, and 

 have a little leaf-soil 7)Iaced around the 

 cornis when the natural soil is stiff and 

 lnMvy. Aniong the montbretias Prometheus 

 is an esjiecially handsome variety, and Lady 

 Hamilton, Geoi gc' Davison^ Germania. West- 

 wick, and Lord Xei^on are some of tlie hot. 



SPRING FLOWERS.— nie recent mild 

 weather has brought on the spring flowers 

 raj)idly, and various subjects are already 

 ((uite gay. Stir the surface soil in flower 

 beds with the Dutch hoe, and keep every- 

 thing smart and tidy. Snowdrops and 

 aconites have been rather short-lived this 

 vear, but the lovely chionodoxas and the 

 crocuses are very bright. Anemone palsatilla 

 is flowering gaily, and Erica carnea is a mass 

 of bloom, while "Daphne Blagyana is already 

 flowering profusely, and forms an object of 

 especial beauty in the rock garden. 



TUBEROUS BEGONIAS.— It is now time 

 to start these into growth, and a good plan 

 is to place the tubers in boxes half-filled with 

 leaf-soil in a fairly warm house until growth 

 is active, when thoy can be put separately 

 into small pots, using a light open compost. 



W^hen they are first started little moisture 

 is required except that provided by the 

 syringe. When they have become estab^ 

 lished in the pots remove them to a cool 

 house or frame where they can gradually 

 be hardened off. 



ANNUALS. — To produce sturdy planta 

 most kinds should be sown now :n boxes of 

 fine soil or in a cold frame. When tliey are 

 large enough prick them out to obtain 

 strong plants for planting in the flowering 

 quarters. The kind?; recently enumerated in 

 the Gardeners' Magazine are all recom- 

 mended for garden adornment. The middlp 

 of April is soon enough to sow in the open 

 ground. — J. Gardner, Batsford Park Gar- 

 dens. 



FRUITS UNDER CLASS. 



MELONS. — When the leading growths of 

 the earliest plants have attained a length of 

 three feet, the points should be pinched out 

 to induce the development of fruiting shoots; 

 stop the laterals which show fruit at the 

 second leaf beyond the fruit, and all un- 

 fruitful laterals should be pinched back to 

 two or three leaves. We do not allow any 

 laterals to grow below the trellis; these are 

 rubbed ofif as soon as they appear, but every 

 care is taken of the leaves, from the soil 

 upwards, to accelerate the swelling of tlie 

 stem in proportion to the quantity of leaves 

 and laterals it has to sustain upon the trellis. 

 We adopt the system of pollinating the 

 flowers as soon as open, llie atmosphere of 

 the house is kept fairly dry during the flower- 

 ing period, air being admitted on all favour- 

 able occasions ; syringing is withheld for four 

 or five days, or even a week, and each flower 

 is pollinated during that period. This 

 method does not, of course, allow all the 

 fruits to be "set" at the same time, but we 

 have never found that it materially affects 

 the swelling of the young fruits if strong 

 healthy plants are maintained. In fact, we 

 find under this system that the ripening of 

 the fruits is prolonged, which is of the ut- 

 most importance where .a constant supply of 

 melons is required. 



PINE- APPLES. —Endeavour to shift the 

 plants that require it as soon as possible into 

 their fruiting pots, using a compost as re- 

 commended in a previous calendar. The soil 

 must be thoroughly warmed before beiUj 

 used, and rammed firmly around the sides o. 

 the pot, and well up around the collars ot 

 the plants; the compost should be in a fairly 

 mo"st condition when used, as this will ob- 

 viate the necessity of watering for several 

 days. After potting, plunge the pots up to 

 their rims in the fermenting material, close 

 the ventilators, and syringe the plants early 

 in the afternoon to induce the roots to pusn 

 into the new soil. Maintain an atmospheric 

 temperature of 80 to 8j degrees, and admK 

 air when the w^eather permits. if. 

 lengthening of the days and more sunshine, it 

 will be necessarv to examine fruiting planj^- 

 two or three times a week, and those requir- 

 ing water should be given a sufficient quan- 

 titv of tepid water to thoroughly soak w 

 soil : applications of liquid manure or som 

 chcmiial fertiliser should be given once 

 week. 



the 



SECOND EARLY VINES 



Any vines that 



have l>een tied down to ensure an even br«a 

 should be returned to the trellis. Vj^^^ 

 this is accomplished, commence to dis 

 directly it can l)e ascertained which ^^^.^ 

 best growths to select. Nothing is gaj^ ^ 

 by allowing the shoots to remain crow« 

 before proceeding with this operation, 

 crease the night temperature to 6j) deg ,^ 

 with a temperature of 70 to 75 ^f^j^^'.^ 

 the dav time, allowing a rise of "i^r- 

 with sun-heat. Administer water ^o^^^.^^j^i^ 

 ders if necessarv, and create a moist, 

 atmosphere by damping down the P^^^^^'^f^d, 

 walls several times a day, spray tne 

 lightly, and close the house early i" 

 afternoon to nurse the sun heat as 

 possible. Do not allow the lipt-water pip^j, 

 l>ecome overheated at any time, <vr tii J' 

 probably cause the foliage to 

 fested with red spider.— Henry K. J^^^ 



Cardiff Castle Gardens. 



