November 4, 1880. ] JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
413 
anthemum frutescens Etoile d’Or, which he introduced from 
abroad, and of which he has now somewhere about ten thousand 
plants ; but even this is not enough, and he had telegraphed that 
very morning for a thousand more. These are grown more for 
the sake of their blooms than for the plants themselves, and by 
judicious management they may well nigh always be had in 
bloom ; and for the bouquet makers they are at all times most 
valuable, while as pot plants able to stand the heat of a sitting- 
room they are also most desirable. A large houseful of Adiantum 
cuneatum for cutting shows how valuable this pretty Fern is. 
All the accessions that have been made to the class do not dis¬ 
place it, A. gracillimum and A. farleyense are not nearly so much 
appreciated. 
Another plant to which Mr. Howard has devoted considerable 
attention is the perpetual-flowering Carnation. He has endea¬ 
voured to procure some which will not deserve the name of Tree 
Carnations, but by the dwarfness of their habit be more readily 
accessible. It is not every greenhouse that can house these tall 
plants, but most amateurs would welcome some not so tall, and 
this Mr. Howard has succeeded in obtaining. Houses were filled 
with nice stubby plants which grow about 18 inches high, and 
these he is preparing to send out in six different colours. These 
come in very usefully for cut flowers. 
The place itself does not impress you much as you enter it. It 
is in a gravel pit, and no end of troubles have been occasioned by 
the water ; but rough though it seems, you very soon find out 
that it is in the hands of a man who knows what he is about, and 
whose skill and industry will surmount any difficulties he has to 
contend with.—D., Deal. 
THE CHAMPION POTATO IN THE NORTH OF 
SCOTLAND. 
It is surprising how the cultivation of the Champion Potato 
has spread over the Highlands of Scotland. It is in general 
favour both with farmers and cottagers, the latter also esteeming 
a variety they call Red Rocks. 
I planted for the first time in the garden here one peck of 
Magnum Bonum, from which I obtained three bushels of tubers of 
excellent quality, not so waxy as one of your correspondents 
describes them. I hear that at the Inverness Farmers’ Grain and 
Root Show Magnum Bonum was first and Champion second in 
the late Potatoes. I hope to see in two or three years that the 
Magnum Bonum is as generally known in the Highlands of Scot- 
Scotland as the Champion is, both of which are the best disease- 
resisting Potatoes we have.— Angus McDonald. 
ABNORMAL GROWTH IN THE GRAPE VINE. 
Referring to Messrs. Taylor and Iggulden’s notes on this sub¬ 
ject, may I be allowed to say that the Vine alluded to here as having 
been rooted at the upper end and then severed from the original 
roots was so treated by way of experiment, and that the idea was 
perfectly original, as was also the thought of rooting the Vines at 
all in that way ? but I did not, nor do I consider such an idea more 
than a natural one for any man of ordinary intellect. Had I 
thought otherwise my pride would have received a severe shock 
on a friend referring me to page 810 of the Gardeners' Chronicle 
for 1875. There I found recorded that Mr. Rochford, Page Green, 
Tottenham—a successful market cultivator—had been practically 
testing for years what I considered my own discovery. To say 
that I was not at first a little disappointed would be contrary to 
human nature ; but, on the other hand, to counterbalance my dis¬ 
appointment I had the opinion of a practical man that my in¬ 
tended discovery was already a success, and so I went on with it 
in greater confidence. Now I am more enamoured of it than 
ever, and that for a very good reason—viz., that the Vines 
evidently appreciate being rooted at each end, as is shown by 
the production of finer Grapes. 
The house in which the experiment has been carried out was 
originally a lean-to, but the Vines did so well that the back wall 
was taken down and the house made into a span, the Vines being 
trained down the roof, and as soon as they reached the bottom a 
border was made and the tops pegged into it. The house is 
51 feet long and 25 feet in width ; the length of rafters, both sides, 
being 36 feet. There are ten Vines in the house, each Vine having 
two rods, so that each Vine has from border line to border line 
upwards of 40 feet run of rods, and each Vine three distinct sets 
of roots, caused by the rooting of each rod at the ends. The one 
Vine that was severed after the first season’s rooting was merely 
tried to test its fruiting powers when turned upside down. The 
portion left was 6 feet long, and the same season carried and 
finished off perfectly four good bunches of fruit, certainly as good 
as those on the parent Vine. Perhaps I ought to add that the 
tops, or rather what were the tops, the first season persistently 
pushed young shoots through the soil, which were as persistently 
rubbed off, and now they manifest no disposition to throw up 
suckers or shoots, and the Vines arc of equal strength throughout. 
I am not a scientific man, so cannot solve the problem as to 
the changed route and circulation of the sap, hence I must leave 
that to the vegetable physiologist. It is sufficient for me that the 
experiment has been successful as regards the production of fine 
Grapes.—W. Wildsmith, lie cltfield. 
THREE GOOD ORCHIDS. 
Odontoglossum Roezlii. —Though this species may not be 
so useful as 0. cirrhosum or 0. Alexandra it is nevertheless one 
of the finest of the genus, and from the easiness with which it is 
cultivated it is one of those sorts which every gardener may safely 
take in hand. I have not tried it in a lower temperature than 
55° throughout the winter ; perhaps 5° higher would be better, as 
it is constantly growing. Our plants are grown about 9 inches 
from the glass. It does not root deeply, but produces numberless 
rootlets through the surface of the potting material. It is very 
necessary to keep the soil always in a fresh condition. When 
repotting I wash the old material from the roots and place the 
plant in pots just large enough to hold the roots, pressing the soil 
in rather firmly. The compost used is the fibres of peat, living 
sphagnum, and small pieces of charcoal in about equal propor¬ 
tions ; in this I find it roots freely and requires a good supply of 
water when in full growth. At no period of the year should 
water be entirely withheld. 
Epidendrum vitellinum. — This very distinct Orchid is 
another species which ought to be found in every garden. I 
have heard it called difficult to manage, but cannot say that I 
have found that correct. I commenced with a stock of newly 
imported plants, which arrived in the early part of the year, and 
would advise those who intend to add this species to their col¬ 
lection to obtain their plants the same way. They can be bought 
at a much cheaper rate than established plants, and are very easy 
to establish ; the second season’s growth in many of the plants 
giving larger bulbs than those made in their native country. 
When received, after washing them, nearly fill as many pots 
as will be required with clean potsherds, on these place some 
sphagnum and a small portion of a soil composed of peat and 
sphagnum, rather more of the former than the latter, adding a 
few small pieces of charcoal or potsherds, then place the old roots 
so that the plant may be kept firmly in its place after the rest of 
the compost has been added. The base of the old pseudo-bulbs 
may be slightly buried, which will cause them to break freely ; 
keep them well above the rim of the pots, and water only when 
the soil requires it; place the plants where they can at all times 
have a supply of fresh air, and when they are close to the glass 
I find them do very well in the same temperature as cool Orchids, 
only they will not bear a stagnant atmosphere. After the young 
growths have made some progress the second year turn out the 
whole stock and repot them if necessary, removing the whole of 
the old soil; do not drain the pots so much this time, and give 
the roots a greater depth of soil, supplying water when it is really 
required. Under such treatment I have found this Orchid succeed 
very well. 
Cypripedium insigne. — This is another easily cultivated 
Orchid, and one that well repays good treatment. Our plants 
are repotted every second year ; if they are allowed to remain 
longer without repotting, the flowers are much smaller than 
they ought to be. I treat these like ordinary plants in the 
mode of potting. For plants in 6 or 7-inch pots about 1^-inch 
depth of drainage is given ; the roots of the plants are washed 
clear of all old material, and the new potting soil is packed equally 
amongst the roots in repotting, leaving half an inch underneath 
the rim of the pot clear for receiving water. The compost I 
employ consists of peat, sphagnum, dry cow dung, and broken 
potsherds, and the second year a surfacing of cow dung is given 
the plants, and soot water used for watering. About twice a 
week is as often as they require water. After flowering our stock 
is placed in a cold vinery, and in spring the plants are kept warmer. 
Through summer a pit is found for them, and when in flower 
they may be placed wherever they may be required.—R. P. 
Brotherston. 
Wintering Fuchsias Outside. —If there are any who have 
Fuchsias outside at present, or who have not space sufficient to 
secure all under cover, I would recommend them to make a trial 
of bedding-out their plants in the mixed border. I take them out 
of their pots, prepare and manure the spaces intended for them, 
