282 
JOURNAL OF EORTIGULTURE ANB COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ September 11, 1884. 
those of the previous autumn Merveille de Lyon is the only 
French Eose amongst Hybrid Perpetuals which has really 
come fully to the front, and that in a very decided manner. 
It is without doubt the purest white amongst the Hybrid 
Perpetuals, and the season having been a favourable one for 
light Koses it has been exhibited in grand form, frequently 
taking the prize as the best stand of light Eoses; but of the 
numerous brood which came out at the same time I cannot 
bring to mind any that have made a mark. There have 
been some novelties amongst Teas which are promising. 
Miss Edith Gifford has been shown well, being a large and 
well-shaped Eose, flesh and salmon-pink in colour. Madame 
Cusin, a new shade of colour, has also appeared in many 
stands. It is of a rosy purplish tinge. Souvenir de Therese 
Levet was also shown well in a few instances. It is the 
most brilliant in colour of any Tea Eose, bright red, said to 
be a seedling from Adam; but I must confess that these 
brighter-coloured Tea Eoses have no charm for me. They 
invariably, to my mind, mar the beauty of a stand. I 
cannot but think that the chaste and refined beauty of such 
varieties as Marie Van Houtte, Comtesse de Nadaillac, Cathe¬ 
rine Mermet, Eubens, &c., is interfered with when such 
coloured flowers as these are introduced amongst them 
Madame Lambard is quite deep enough in colour, and these 
flowers are deeper still. Amongst the home Eoses Lady 
Sheffield, although not exactly a new Eose, has been very 
fine, and will be found to be a valuable Eose. 
But whilst the newer Eoses have not made much mark, 
some of the older varieties have come out grandly this year. 
It has been a season for the lighter-coloured Eoses, and the 
blooms of surpassing excellence of some of the brighter- 
coloured flowers have been few, and remain fixed in one’s 
memory. Who can readily forget the marvellous flower of 
General Jacqueminot exhibited by Messrs. Curtis & San¬ 
ford at South Kensington, or the wondrous bloom of Marie 
Baumann shown by Messrs. Mack at Darlington, to be 
rivalled, as I understand, by the A. K. Williams shown by 
Mr. Hall at Sheffield ? but it is because the general run of 
these flowers was not up to the mark that these remain in 
one’s memory. But if I take the light-coloured Eoses, if I 
am asked. Where was the best bloom shown of Merveille de 
Lyon or Madame Lacharme ? I am forced to confess that they 
were so generally good that I cannot determine the question. 
Then how fine such Eoses as Francois Michelon, Mons. 
Noman, and that favourite old flower, Madame Charles 
Crapelet, have been—Eoses which are easily spoiled by wet 
but rejoicing in sunshine, of which we have certainly had a 
very large share this season. 
Such, then, are a few of the salient points which strike 
me in looking back on the past Eose season. The zeal of 
Eose-growers in no way abated ; continually, as old exhibi¬ 
tors drop off, their places are supplied by new comers. New 
centres of exhibiting have been opened, while some old ones 
have been closed; but Eose shows are now so numerous that 
exhibitors have to choose where they are to show, for to be 
at all of them is impossible, and with a sigh the enthusiastic 
grower says, “ I can’t go there, as 1 am bound to show 
elsewhere;” and while it must ever be a source of regret that 
sotne of the giants of former days are no longer with us, yet 
while we regret the absence of such men as Messrs. Baker, 
Jowitt, and Davies, we gladly welcome new comers, as Mr. 
Girdlestone, Mr. Slaughter, and others, and hope that they 
will help to maintain the high position to which Eose shows 
have attained. — D., Deal. 
OUTDOOE MUSHEOOM CULTUEE. 
Tins method of Mushroom culture at Oakbrook, Sheffield, 
the residence of Mrs. Mark Firth, is carried out very successfully, 
this season’s productions being quite equal (with the exception afb^r- 
wards mentioned) to the remarkable crop that was reported in the 
Journal of Horticulture last year. The demand for Mushrooms at 
Oakbrook having greatly increased since this system was adopted by 
Mr. W. K. Woodcock, in order to meet the requirements this season he 
made up two beds, ridge-shaped, about 10 yards long. The first wis 
put together last November, and spawned as soon as ready. It 
commenced to bear in March, and has yielded a large quantity^ of 
most excellent Mushrooms that have been gathered almost daily, 
several gatherings weekly always being required on ordinary occasions. 
The second bed was made up in February, and has produced as good 
a crop as the first one. In the course of the usual gatherings on one 
occasion nearly a bushel of good Mushrooms was taken from it at 
one time. The Mushrooms have been firm in texture, of good size, 
and fine flavour. I saw the beds soon after they comirienced bearing, 
and in addition to the Mushrooms ready for gathering there were 
ver}^ large numbers of small ones visible wherever the ridges were 
uncovered. 
lioth beds continued productive until the early part of July, 
when they began to dry up and the produce to fall off considerably ; 
and although Mushrooms have been regularly obtained up to the 
present time, the yield has only been small. The beds are fully 
exposed to the sun, and dried up rapidly in the great heat we have 
lately experienced, which evidently is detrimental to the artificial 
growth of IMushrooms in the open air. The beds were never watered 
except upon one occasion, when they were uncovered for a short 
time during a slight shower. Mr. Woodcock attributes the falling-off 
in the crop to the hot weather of July and August, and he would 
recommend, when practicable, the beds to be made up in a position 
partially shaded from the sun during the hottest months of the year. 
This opinion appears to be a correct one, as the ridges are again 
showing signs of activity. Simultaneously with the falling of the 
temperature of the atmosphere numerous young Mushrooms made 
their appearance all over them ; they now promise a further increased 
supply for the autumn. The bed first made up will shortly be 
removed to make room for a new one, but the other will remain for 
some time longer, and it would be interesting to know the result of 
the next few weeks, in order to test the accuracy of the opinion 
given as the cause of the almost dormant state during the period 
mentioned above. 
Mr. Woodcock informs me that the beds he makes up are gene¬ 
rally productive about five months, which, I believe, is almost double 
the time that Mr. Barter gathers from his beds. This important 
prolongation of the bearing period speaks very highly^ of Mr. 
Woodcock's skill and ability, and is due, he believes, to his system 
of adding from time to time fresh sweet litter to the covering. This 
is a valuable hint, and worthy of note by all cultivators. Litter 
fresh from the stables is.rich in ammonia, and this is doubtless the 
principal agent in prolonging the period of bearing. The old material 
bv exposure to atmospheric influences and rain loses the ammonia 
ijeontained in a fresh state, and evidently its value as a covering 
for the ridges. The method adopted is the one so ably advocated in 
“Mushrooms for the Million” by Mr. J. Wright, and is another of 
the now numerous proofs of the value and utility of the work that 
has commenced a new era in Mushroom cultivation. All who wish 
to grow Mushrooms, and those w’ho have not been thoroughly success¬ 
ful in their efforts, should possess a copy, and carefully read the 
chapters devoted to their cultivation ; and if the instructions are 
followed with care and attention success is almost certain, provided, 
of course, that the materials used are in a proper condition, and such 
as arc recommended. Mr. Woodcock, who is well known as an able 
gardener and a successful cultivator of Mushrooms, thinks very highly 
of the work and the system so ably advocated, which he has proved 
to be thoroughly sound and practicable.—J. H. S. 
OECHID NOTES. 
Dendeobium Feeybaianum. —This variety was imported by 
the Liverpool Horticultural Company, Garston, and sold by 
them as a new variety, according to the testimony of their 
collector. Whether it is new or not is mere than I can tell, but 
it is totally distinct from any other Dendiobium that I have 
seen. This is also the opinion of an experienced Orchid grower 
to whom a flower was shown, and who purchased at the same 
time I believe, but has not yet flowered his plants. It is little 
more than twejve months since the plants were sold by auction, 
but they had been previously potted into 5 and 6-inch pots, and 
young growths had just commenced to issue from the base of 
most of the plants. The growths lengthened out very slowly, as 
may be supposed, for the first growths were made during the 
autumn and winter, and only completed with us in the spring. 
The temperature of the house in which they were growing 
averaged about 60° at night. We have two plants, and the 
growth of one was completed earlier than that of the other. As 
soon as the pseudo-bulbs were firm water at the roots was 
gradually withheld, and the plants kept comparatively dry for at 
least two months. The plant that completed its growth first has 
never been removed from the house in which it was first grown, 
and has been flowering during the last month or six weeks. 
