JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
March 31, 1881. ] 
251 
the-Year-Round Cabbage Lettuce. These are all really good vege¬ 
tables, equally good for table or prizewinning. 
By ail means sow seeds early, but do not do so till the soil is 
quite ready. It is far better to wait a week or two for this than 
to risk the losses which so often occur where seed is sown in soil 
that is cold and wet. Pig dung and wood ashes are the cottagers’ 
manure, and he can want no better if he has enough of them. 
House slops, especially soapsuds, are good for all growing crops ; 
none should be wasted, but all should be poured in a covered 
tub and thence applied regularly, especially to Celery, Cabbages, 
Lettuce, Onions, and Peas and Beans. Strawberries, Raspberries, 
Currant and Gooseberry bushes, are all wonderfully improved 
by it. When applied in hot weather it is well to stir the soil 
first with a hoe and to scatter a little litter over the surface 
afterwards, or much of the goodness of the sewage is lost. Fre¬ 
quent stirring of the surface is always good for the crops, keeping 
down weeds and opening the soil to the sweetening influence of 
the air. In applying sewage or water do not pour it upon the 
crown of the plants, but close alongside them. Lettuce and Celery 
are both liable to have decayed centres if watered carelessly. 
Take care to water thoroughly ; an abundant watering twice or 
three times a week is far better than a mere wetting of the surface 
daily. 
All cottagers should keep bees, and I would again point out 
the importance of having plenty of sweet-scented flowers for 
them. What can be more beautiful than bowers and arches of 
Honeysuckle ? The first sowing of Sweet Peas should be ready 
for the sticks now ; more should be sown, and a regular succession 
of them and Mignonette kept up till as late as possible in autumn. 
—Edward Luckhurst. 
MR. DAY’S ORCHIDS. 
To-day (Thursday), the sale of the noted collection of Orchids 
at High Cross, Tottenham, commences at Stevens’s rooms, and 
will be continued at intervals until one of the finest collections 
in the kingdom has been distributed. It is a matter for general 
regret among orchidists that the numerous rarities and handsome 
specimens which have taken so many years to bring together 
should be again widely dispersed ; but there is the redeeming 
point, that many who have long envied Mr. Day the possession 
of some rare species will now have an opportunity of obtaining 
them. Therefore a few notes upon this fine collection of Orchids 
may be of interest to some readers who have not had the privilege 
of visiting it. 
About ten houses, chiefly span-roofed structures, and from 30 
to GO feet or more in length, were on my visit exclusively occupied 
with Orchids, all the chief genera being represented by large 
numbers of plants. Cattleyas and Laelias are particularly fine, 
such well-known forms as Cattleya Trianm, C. purpurata, Lselia 
elegans, and L. crispa being represented by very handsome speci¬ 
mens. The pretty little Laelia cinnabarina was flowering, its 
small orange-coloured blooms being suggestive of its ally L. bar- 
pophylla. Yandas and Aerides are similarly abundant and 
vigorous, among the former being some fine examples of V. tricolor, 
including the beautiful Dalkeith variety, the rare V. Parishi, 
Y. Lowii, and Y. gigantea, the latter bearing several of its large 
yellow flowers. Phalsenopsids, too, constitute a great feature, and 
have this year been uncommonly fine ; even now there is a hand¬ 
some display of P. amabilis, P. Schilleriana, and P. grandi- 
flora. Of the latter there are some extremely beautiful varieties, 
one bearing about a dozen flowers, each over 5 inches in 
diameter, and with fine petals 2 inches broad. One form of 
P. amabilis, too, is especially noticeable for the deep tint of red 
in the lip. The rare P. Mannii (see page 257) is also flowering 
freely. In the same house Angraecums are doing remarkably 
well, A. sesquipedale and A. citratum being especially note¬ 
worthy. One specinfen of the latter had a spike about 1^ foot 
long, and bearing forty flowers—the finest example I have 
seen of this beautiful Orchid. All the principal Cypripediums 
are grown, some of the plants being very large. One now in 
flower, named C. barbatum grandiflorum nanum, is remarkable 
both for the great size of the flowers and the dwarf habit of the 
plant, to which characters it owes its name. Dendrobiums, Epi- 
dendrums, Oncidiums, Saccolabiums, and numerous genera 
are similarly largely represented, and to indicate the species 
grown would fill a volume. Among the cool house Orchids 
Odontoglossums are grandly represented, many hundreds of 
plants being grown. O. crispum, 0. gloriosum, 0. vexillarium, 
O. cirrhosum, 0. odoratum, 0. Halli, O. Pescatorei, O. triumphans, 
with many others, some well known and some extremely rare, 
entirely fill a large house, while Masdevallias are almost as nume¬ 
rous. Of the latter the rare M. trochilus was recently in flower, 
and the true M. Chimsera, both more singular than beautiful, but 
highly interesting to botanists. It is almost needless to say that 
Mr. Gedney, the gardener, had all the plants in excellent condition, 
and no doubt some high prices will be realised for them. These 
necessarily brief notes scarcely do justice to this grand collection, 
but it will enable some idea to be formed of its extent.—L. 
DESTROYING THE AURICULA APHIS. 
In reference to an article on Auriculas and woolly aphis by 
“ D., Deal" (.page 209), I may state that we were quite free from 
that pest until April, 1878, at which time we had some new varie¬ 
ties, which were placed in a frame with our stock. 1 did not dis¬ 
cover the insect until the following August, when the plants were 
repotted, and I then found the new plants badly infested on the 
roots and the collar, and it had spread to a great extent over the 
whole stock. I dissolved 1 ozs. of soft soap in a gallon of water, 
and added a quart of strong tobacco water ; I then had the plants 
shaken out, and dipped the roots and collar up to the foliage in 
the mixture. I placed them on the potting bench for a quarter 
of an hour, and then washed the roots in clear water and repotted 
the plants. The old soil was burnt, and the pots were placed into 
a large tub of water containing soft soap. I have never found 
any trace of woolly aphis on the plants since. We have had 
three different batches of new Auriculas, all of which have been 
accompanied by the same pest, which has been destroyed in the 
same way, with the exception of two plants, one of which was 
watered with paraffin and one with Fir tree oil, half a pint of 
oil to 2 gallons of water. I forget to what extent the paraffin 
was diluted, but the roots and the aphides were killed in each 
case although the plants lived. If “ D., Deal" could be induced 
to try the former experiment I think he might still linger on as 
an Auricula grower.—J. L. 
FANCY PANSIES.—No. 3. 
( Continued f rom page 497, last vol .) 
After the terrible weather we have experienced of late it is 
somewhat difficult to fix the mind or memory upon a subject 
associated with warmth and brightness ; but the advancing sea¬ 
son and the hope it engenders act as a stimulus to the effort. 
Where a family is as numerous as Fancy Pansies, and where there 
are so many resembling each other, a selection becomes no easy 
task, especially as there has been no attempt made to divide them 
into classes as in the case of Show varieties. Under these circum¬ 
stances I submit the following list of forty varieties with every 
deference, knowing that what may suit my taste will be rejected 
by others equally able to judge that important qualification 
harmony of colour. Smoothness, form, size, and dissimilarity have 
been considered, and many old favourites have been mercilessly 
rejected because of some imperfection. The varieties named, I 
may say, have been selected from upwards of five hundred that 
have passed through my hands, and they are the kinds from which 
I should elect to choose a box of twenty-four or thirty-six for a 
strong competition. The list, it should be remembered, includes 
the best of the new varieties sent out last year. 
Agnes M. Scott. —Dark violet purple blotches ; upper petals 
shaded lilac, edged all round with straw colour. Attraction. — 
Very dark blotches shaded with rich crimson, edged all round 
with yellow. Cabul. —Dark crimson self ; good eye, large blotches. 
Capt. Tomlin. —Violet blotches, shaded pink and edged white; 
upper petals deep lilac edged white. Champion. —Pure white 
self ; large solid dark velvety blotches. Countess of Strathmore. 
—Clear white self, with large solid blue blotches. Duchess of 
Edinburgh. —Primrose self ; large dark blotches. Smooth and of 
good form. Effie Walsh. —Large violet purple blotches on all the 
petals, with a well-defined white margin round each petal. Very 
smooth and constant. Frederick Gifford. —Maroon blotches; very 
neat eye ; upper petals and margin of blotch rich carmine, with a 
narrow wire edge of yellow round all the petals. Fred Perkins. 
—Creamy violet; rich velvety black blotches, surrounded by 
rosy crimson. F. IF. Leland. —Upper petals violet veined with 
crimson ; under petals large, dense violet blotches margined with 
pale lemon. George Rodgers— Dark velvet purple self, with soft 
blotches and good eye, with a very narrow white edge round the 
under petals. Smooth and of good substance. George Wood. — 
Very rich light crimson, with dark blotches on side and under 
petals. Gladiator.—Very large dark blotches edged and veined with 
crimson and yellow ; upper petals heavily margined with crimson. 
Grand Monarch. —Very dark crimson shaded with maroon ; large 
solid purple blotches. J. II. Dorrawman. —Dark brown self, with 
dense mulberry blotch ; neat eye. J. T. D. Llewelyn. —Reddish 
mulberry shaded with magenta ; solid dark blotches, neat eye, 
