80 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
r February 2, 1886. 
came on. It was a snowcloud sweeping swiftly out of the north. 
Daylight was in a moment gone, and one was almost bewildered by 
the unexpected obscurity. Not much snow has fallen, however, 
indeed the covei'iig is all too scanty. Farmers and gardeners desire 
more moisture. Spring flowers are well to the surface. Here and 
there some Snowdrops, Winter Aconites, and the dead time is past. 
Every day one expects something to appear. The gardener’s eye is 
always watchful ; the gardener’s heart always hopeful.—A. M. B., 
Mid Lincoln. 
CYPRIPEDIUM SAUNDBRSIAKXTM. 
The Cypripedium which was noted last week as having been 
purchased by Mr. W. Bull for £300 was inadvertently given as 
C. Sanderianum, but it should have been C. Saundersianum, a quite 
distinct and very remarkable hybrid. It is, however, so scarce and 
so little known that it deserves a special descriptive and historical 
note. I have been favoured with most of the particulars by Mr. 
R. H. Measures, Mr. F. G. Tautz, and Mr. W. Bull, who are, I 
understand, the only possessors of this Cypripedium in England. 
It appears to have been raised about twenty years ago by Mr. 
AVm. Marshall, now of Auchinraith, Bexley, and recently elected 
on the Fruit Committee of the Royal Horticultural Society, but he 
was some years ago a member and Chairman of the Floral Com¬ 
mittee. Nothing certain seems to be known respecting its 
parentage, but it is thought that C. Schlimi or C. Sedeni was 
one of its parents. In the leaf it resembles C. Sedeni, but it is not 
so free in growth or flowering as that, for though it has been culti¬ 
vated so long flowers have been seldom produced. According to 
the descriptions given by those who have seen the flowers it must 
be one of the most handsome yet obtained. The general colour is 
said to be a fine “ mauve purple,” the dorsal sepals white with green 
and purple stripes, the petals broad spotted with purple on a white 
ground. 
Mr. Marshall’s plant was purchased by Mr. AV. Bull, and subse¬ 
quently sold to Mr. AV. Lee, of Leatherhead in the autumn of 
1883 for £00 on the condition that when it could be divided a side 
break should be returned to him. A year or so afterw^ards this 
was done, a second break having then been produced, which was 
obtained by Mr. Bull, the original break being purchased for £100. 
One of these went to enrich the valuable collection of Cypi ipediums 
in the possession of Mr. F. G. Tautz, Studley House, Hammer¬ 
smith ; the other was secured by a firm in Ghent. The latter w'as 
shortly afterwards sold to M. Jules Hye of that city, who is W'ell 
known as an admirer of the Cypripediums. He divided it, and one 
of the plants was obtained by Mr. R. H. Measures, The AVood- 
lands, Streatham, in exchange for some of his choice plants. The 
original plant at Dow-nside flowered in 1880, and was then described 
under the name C. Saundersianum in honour of the late Mr. AVihon 
Saunders. This is the plant transferred to Chelsea, and now 
divided into six pieces. 
Mr. R. H, Measures, has kindly favoirred me with the following 
note :—“ Referring to our conversation at Protheroe’s, ro Cypripe¬ 
dium Saundersianum, I find it w’as actually raised by Mr. Marshall of 
Enfield, Middlesex. Its parents are Schlimi and caudatum. From 
the habit of the plant I should think Schlimi is the seed parent. 
The plant is w’hat v/e call a difficult one to grow. I remember a 
conversation I had with Mr. Lee, and his telling me that it had 
bothered him considerably, until at last, finding an insect somewhat 
resembling a small beetle, he attributed to this the ap['arent 
blemishes in the leaves, thinking the insect fed on them. This could 
not have been so, as the plant afterwards (and at other places) 
showed the same defect of foliage. AVhen Mr. Marshall’s collection 
was sold the seecding went into the possession of the Royal Horti¬ 
cultural Society, and was at South Kensington some time between 
18G(j and 18G9. AVhen the Royal Horticultural Society’s collection 
was sold the plant was lost sight of by me, but L believe it passed 
into the hands of Mr. Saunders, and was by him named ‘ Saundors- 
ianum ’ (but of the naming I am not sure). From Mr. Saunders 
I believe it went into Mr. Bull’s nursery. There appears to 
be some confusion as to its being sold to Mr. Lee. I had it from 
Mr. Bull himself that he presented it to Mr. Lee, owing to Mr. 
Lea being so greatly struck by its beauty, but from Mr. Lee 
I understood he bought it with other plants. At any rate it passed 
into Mr. Lee’s possession and there flowered, a flower being sent 
to Professor Reichenbach, who described and possibly named the 
plant. At the commencement of last year I believe Mr. Bull bought, 
a portion of the original plant back from Mr. Lee, and sold one 
part to Mr. M issarel, the well-known Ghent orchidist, who resold it at. 
considerable profit to M. Jules Hye Ley’sen, who divided the plant,, 
keeping one portion himself, the other portion coming, in exchange for 
another rare Cypripedium, to me. One other portion of the original 
plant went to Mr. Tautz’s well-known collection, the price paid’ 
indicating the estimation in which Mr. Bull and Mr. Tautz; 
held it.” 
It will be seen that there are a few minor differences in the 
accounts obtained, but they are worth placing on record in refer¬ 
ence to such a valuable plant.—L. Castle.. 
■ ORCHIDS AT FOREST HILL. 
The following Orchids are in flower just now at Messrs. John- 
Laing & Sons’ Nurseries, Forest Hill, London, S. E. —viz.,. 
Calanthe Veitchi, Catfleya exoniensis, C. Trianae, and C. TrianEe 
delicata, Cypripedium Boxalli, C. Dominianum, and C. insigne, 
Dendrobium Ainsworthi (fine), D. infundibulum, D. limbriatum,. 
D. heterocarpum, D. nobile, D. coerulescens, D. pendulum, D- 
Pierardi, Dendrochilum glumaceum, Lycaste Skinneri, Masdevallia 
ignea (Patersoni), M. polysticta, M. tovarensis, Odontoglossuni 
AlexandriE constrictum, 0. grande, 0. Lindleyanum, 0. Rossi 
majus, Oncidium cucullatum, 0. Forbesi, 0. ornithorhynchum, and 
Pilumna fragrans. 
ORCHIDS AT STUDLEY HOUSE, HAMMERSAIITH. 
This collection has been previously noted in this Journal, and 
is especially remarkable for the large numbers of Cypripediums— 
some 200 varieties—it contains with many rare and beautiful forms- 
iii excellent condition. On a recent visit I found the following,, 
amongst others, in flower :—C. nitens, a cross between C. villosum 
and C. insigne Maulei ; the dorsal sepal is in the way of Maulei, 
but larger ; the petals wavy, light brown, very glossy. C. Hartwegi^ 
beautiful rose colour, in the way of C. Roezli. C. Argus Moensi,. 
very fine, being heavily spotted with dark purple spots, the dorsal 
sepal white, with green lines and spots, not so large as on the petals. 
C. Ashburtonioe var. calospilum is the best of the Ashburtonise-. 
group ; the dorsal sepal large, white, tinged with green and veined 
with purple ; the lip pale purple tinged M'ith yellow and slightly 
blotched with purple. C. Petri, beautiful, figured recently. C.. 
Marshallianum, said to be the only plant in the country, the result 
of a cross between C. concolor and C. vonustum, the parentage¬ 
being very noticeable ; a distinct variety. C. insigne var_ 
sylhetense, shorter in the pouch, and more thickly and largely 
spotted than in the type. C. Tautzianum, a charming and distinct 
novelty, described in the Show at South Kensington on the 19tb. 
inst., when it received a first-class certificate, and was described in. 
this Journal. The handsome C. venustum was represented by 
some well grown and vigorously flow-ered examples. Amongst, 
miscellaneous Orchids in flower w'e noted the old but still good 
Ansellia africana. It is seldom seen so well grown as we saw it 
here, and is worth, therefore, putting on record. Zygopetalum 
Mackayi, another old favourite : Odontoglossuni Insleayi leopar- 
dinum, choice ; Lycaste lanipes, Dendrobium bigibbum, &c. The- 
condition of all plants is most creditable to the gardener, Mr. 
Cowley.—B. 
ORCHIDS AT TILGATE, CRAWLEYL 
Amo.vh the other gay and choice occupants of the stoves and 
greenhouses at the above beautiful estate of J. H. Nix, Esq., the 
Orchids are not the least conspicuous. The select collection of 
Cattleyas, Lailias, Dendrobiums, Cypripediums, Calanthes, &c., look 
full of vigour and furnished with stout growths or flowers in various 
stages ; more especially is this notable in the Odontoglossuni house.. 
There are about one hundred plants, chiefly of 0. AlexandrsE, 
0. Pescatorei, and*0. triumphans, with stout bronzy green pseude- 
bulbs and healthy green foliage that are quite in character with 
the strong fleshy roots and stiff flower spikes bearing from nine 
to eighteen flowers on a spike. In the collection is a plant of 
the very beautiful Pilumna fragrans, valuable at this time of the-, 
year for its highly perfumed and pure white flowers, the throat 
oidy having a slight circle of orange, which adds to its beaut 3 L For 
buttonholes or spraj^s it would be wmll adapted, being of a useful 
size and pure colour, with a sufficient length of flow’er stem. All 
the plants are potted in a mixture of chopped sphagnum, peat fibre,, 
and charcoal, the pots being previously half-filled with broken clean, 
crocks. Under the open latticed stages on which the plants are- 
stood are cement tanks the whole length and width of the stage, 
which forms a receptacle for the rsin water from the roofs and i» 
used for watering the plants. The cement path is also constructed 
to hold about 2 inches of water, and a latticed grating is laid over 
it to walk on. The evaporation from these tanks forms the element 
