January 17. 18'* 4 . ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
49 
■alleged “ changelings " charged a higher price than the originals ? 
Altering names is not, I fear, restricted to Chrys mthemums alone, but 
applies particularly to vegetables In this latter class it would be 
interesting to know how many aliases some of them have. The trials 
at Chiswick prove what I have stated; but still the thirst for novelties 
goes on, and the public palate has to be assuaged with novelties only in 
name.—V., Edinburgh. 
Your correspondent, Mr. C. Harman Payne, has taken a wise course 
in making public a grievance which I am sorry to say is very common 
at the present time among a certain class of growers—viz., sending 
out wrongly named Chrysanthemums. Why it should have existed so 
long I fail to see, but if all who have been victimised were to protest 
as well as he the practice would soon become a thing of the past. 
Nothing is more annoying than to grow for a whole season plants that 
were believed to be true to name, and then to find them inaccurate. 
I have experienced a little of this annoyance, and can understand the 
disappointment of others. 
A year or two ago, wishing to renew my stock and obtain a few of 
the newer varieties, I wrote to a grower ordering about fifty varieties, 
which I did not receive until nearly two months after date of ordering. 
Of these not ten proved correctly named. Imagine my feelings when the 
flowering season commenced I saw Mr. Bunn transform itself into 
Emperor of China, Prince Alfred into Lord Derby, Criterion into—well, 
I know not what this would have turned into, as I had not the pleasure 
of seeing it in flower. It seemed an extraordinary variety; it grew for 
fifteen months without showing buds. The year following, more for 
curiosity than anything else, I wrote ordering a few more, but with much 
better results—only half were found to be incorrect. 
I cannot see what advantage respectable firms who value their 
reputation gain by sending out wrongly named varieties, and do not 
believe they would knowingly send them out incorrectly named. Are 
continental growers from whom the English growers receive the plants 
as careful as they should be ? Are the plants all they are represented to 
be? Blame at times is often thrown upon the wrong shoulders. Gar¬ 
deners themselves might be more careful. I have often seen when the 
plants are potted sin.ly small pieces of paper act as substitutes for labels, 
sufficient labels perhaps not being at hand.—C. Waring. 
ADVICE TO YOUNG GARDENERS. 
There is a striking contrast between the communications of your 
two correspondents, “A Working Gardener” and “ H., Notts," on the 
above subject. “A Working Gardener” ably expresses himself in an 
excellent article, which deserves the attention of every young gardener ; 
and if your correspondent “ H., Notts ,” instead of writing in corrobora¬ 
tion, had exerted himself in the commendable endeavour to finish the 
work commenced by “A Working Gardener,” by pointing out the best 
way in which a knowledge of the subjects enumerated could be most 
advantageously acquired, he would have conferred a lasting boon upon 
the young members of the gardening fraternity. 
It is certainly a fact that many of the young men spend their evenings 
in a very careless, not to say unprofitable, manner, thinking only of the 
time being. 
If the desirability of studying the sciences—chemistry, geology, 
geometry, vegetable physiology, botany, and physics, as a scientific basis 
of gardening operations were pointed out in more forcible language than 
has hitherto been the case, I am of opinion that many more would make 
an attempt to acquire some knowledge of them than at present even 
know of their existence or meaning. I do not suppose the average young 
gardener knows what the various manures are composed of, or in what 
way they are beneficial to plant life ; and is it not as desirable for the 
gardener to know that as for the physician to know what he is adminis¬ 
tering to a patjent, and in what way it will act upon his system ? 
Nor yet, perhaps, do they know how plants obtain their food from the 
soil. That the application of manure is an essential operation is known 
from custom, but in what form it is assimilated by the plants is not 
generally known. I guarantee if the question were put to many the 
answer would be to the effect that it was brought about by an indescrib¬ 
able something, and they would not be able to explain the matter any 
farther. I consider the reason the sciences, chemistry, See., are not more 
studied is because it is not generally understood that they are in any way 
conducive to the gardener’s benefit, or they are looked upon as something 
entirely beyond the grasp of the ordinary intellect. 
It is, as “ A Working Gardener” observes, uphill work to pursue 
such study without the aid of a tutor, especially when the student is 
only possessed of an elementary education, as is the case with the 
majority of young men in gardens. But much may be done by appli¬ 
cation and perseverance, and it behoves any young man to apply himself 
solely to his trade or profession, be it what it may, making it his only 
aim if he would earn a name for himself in the world. 
“A Working Gardener,” in his excellent article, invites the opinion 
of many able writers when he says, “ There are many amongst your 
correspondents who can better inform U3 how the above subjects may 
be most profitably studied and a knowledge of them acquired.” I am 
aorry to observe that the invitation has not yet been responded to in a 
manner the subject is so well worthy of. 1, for one, wish to thank 
“ A Working Gardener ” for his article on such a good subject, and I 
hope it will not be allowed to fall into obscurity again. I would gladly 
give any information if it lay in my power, but I come seeking advice 
and assistance instead.— Querist. 
The perusal of “A Word to Young Gardeners” in your issue for 
December 13th gave me great pleasure, and I am sure numbers of young 
men (my«elf inclu led) will feel deeply grateful t> “A Working 
Gardener” for his kind words of advice and eucouragement. The 
recital of his experiences when a young man tends to interest and stimu¬ 
late young men to strive to attain as high a mark as possible in the 
profession to which they have devoted themselves. No doubt the young 
men of the present day have many advantages which were denied 
our predecessors. Daring the last twenty or thirty years how many 
improvements have been wrought in the numerous branches of our 
calling, rendering the duties of a gardener less tedious than formerly. 
Amongst these may be mentioned the superiority of hot-water pipes over 
the old flues, the handy means of ventilation by using the simultaneous 
system as compared with the old method. But as the means have 
improved so also has the demand increased, and gardeners of the present 
day have much more to produce than formerly, and in proportion young 
men have more to learn ; so in this age of competition it behoves young 
men to lose no opportunity of improving themselves if they wish to keep 
step with the advance of science. This may be done in numerous ways, 
such as attending evening classes, mutual improvement amongst them¬ 
selves, studying the weekly and other horticultural literature, of which 
so much is now to be had treating on the different methods by which 
plants, fruits, and vegetables may be brought to perfection. 
Reading frivolous exciting novels, to the exclusion of all beneficial 
books or papers, is a serious error into which a great many youDg men 
fall. This is a habit, and a most baneful one, which should and can be 
given up, as I know by experience. I would advise all who are given to 
such reading to quit it at once, and they will never regret it—at least, 
this has been my experience. Card-playing is another debasing game 
which ought to be discountenanced in all respectable circles, but one 
which I am sorry to say is very prevalent in bothies. 
If young gardeners would only follow the advice given to them by 
such kind and experienced men as “ A Working Gardener,” how many 
future troubles and anxieties would be avoided. I trust that “A 
Working Gardener ” may spend a happy new year, and long be spared 
to advise and encourage the rising generation of gardeners. — 
Caledonian. 
BATEMANNIAS AND COOL TREATMENT. 
The term “cool” as applied to the cultivation of Orchids is some¬ 
what vague, and apt to prove misleading. The cool Orchid house of one 
grower may, and often does, differ as much as half a dozen or even more 
degrees as regards temperature from that of another. Some Orchid 
growers recommend a temperature of 45° to 48° during the winter months, 
while others prefer one of from 50° to 53° or even higher. It depends 
greatly on other conditions besides that of heat as to whether the par¬ 
ticular treatment known as cool would prove suitable for the cultivation 
of many Orchids. Many growers are compelled to keep their cool 
house almost as warm as some would think sufficient for a Cattleya 
house, or, to employ another frequently used but almost as indefinite a 
term as cool—the intermediate house. From this it will be seen that 
many plants would thrive in the cool Orchid house of one grower which 
in that of another would soon perish. It is by far the best when giving 
cultural information upon Orchids, or indeed upon any plants, to state 
the temperature that is considered to be most suitable, and leave the 
reader to the choice of houses. It may be well to point out that in those 
cases where large numbers of the most popular of cool Orchids are grown 
there is no danger in keeping the houses at a uniformly low temperature ; 
but where the cool house contains a mixed collection, and some of the 
p'ants are not well understood, it is far safer to keep the temperature at 
something like 50°. The coolest Orchids will not suffer under such 
conditions, whereas in the lower temperature many of those requiring a 
degree or two more heat would soon sicken. 
I was led to make these observations by the remarks on Batemannias 
and their allies, page 555. It is there stated that “cool treatment suits 
most Batemannias,” and “ one of the chief reasons for failures i3 placing 
the plants in too strong heat, where they seem to make good progress at 
first butultimately become enfeebled and collapse.” Now the finest plants 
of the Batemannia, Bollaea, and Pescatorea family I have seen were grown in 
a warm house, where the summer temperature ranged from 70° to 75®, 
and in the winter from 55° to GO 0 . I have grown most of them, and at 
the present time have a good collection in my care. Last summer we 
placed the whole of them in an OJontoglossum house along with 0. vexil- 
larium and 0. Phalamopsis. Here they grew freely. In the winter we 
have always removed them into an East India house, but this year, 
wishing to test their hardiness, I left them standing in their summer 
quarters. The result was that in a short time the leaves turned yellow 
and the hearts of two of the plants suddenly rotted. We at once removed 
the whole of them into the East India house, where they have almost 
recovered. This appears to me conclusive evidence of the injury caused 
by cool treatment to the Batemannia family. 
The late Mr. Spyers, who grew these plants better than I have seen 
them with other cultivators, has made some excellent observations on 
their cultivation in his usual practical style, and which are in my 
opinion the most reliable information we at present possess on the 
management of these beautiful Orchids. He said “ The p'ants—namely, 
Bollaeas, Batemannias, Warscewiczellaq Huntleyas, and Pescatoreas, 
grow in very shady woods in a country where rain falls more or less 
every day in the year, save five or six. . It is easy to understand what 
difficult plants these are to get home alive ; it is indeed rare in buying 
a bundle of imported ones to get more than a few live rhizomes. Theso 
