July 16, 1885.;] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
41 
is no finer Lettuce grown than what is produced on Celery ridges, and we 
seldom lose any youDg plants by the ravages of slugs, as is generally the 
case with Lettuces planted on the level. 
We are not like your correspondent, as we give to our ridges a very 
slight manuring before the trenches are thrown out ; but this is done, not 
that the Lettuce may receive the benefit particularly, but that all the ground 
may be in the same condition when the Celery is taken off. I think it 
is the great depth of soil that produces such large crisp heads, well 
worthy the place on an exhibition table, for I have noticed that when 
earthing Celery that the roots have been cut at a great depth down, 
like cutting Carrots, Parsnips, or any such tape-like vegetables. 
In regard to winter Lettuces, we always throw up a border very high 
at the board side, so that it forms a sharp slope; the winter rains can 
then get away from the Lettuces, and out of many thousands we hardly 
ever lose a dozen plants. This, I am sure, saves a great destruction by 
slugs, as the bank being continually dry at the top prevents them from 
travelling, as they would do on land not thrown up in this manner.— 
H. H., York. 
ONCIDIUM VEXILLARIUM. 
This very excellent species may justly rank among the best. The 
panicle is lax, with about six or seven branches, and it grows about 
Fig. 7.—OncidiHm vexillarinm. 
2 feet high. It is very handsome on account of the number of fairly large 
flowers, the labellum being inch across, and of beautiful bright yellow 
colour. The above name was kindly given me by Professor Reichenbach, 
who remarks that it is allied to O. bifolium, but much grander. It was 
thought by a well-known cultivator to be 0. varicosum, but it differs from 
that species in the labellum, which, instead of being round, has a decided 
tendency to an oblong shape in the direction of width, and it also differs 
by having very much shorter wings at the base of the labellum. 
It may be in some collections, I believe, as O. Rogersi, but it is not, I 
think, so fine a plant. There are many favourite kinds, however, far less 
beautiful. Pot culture is best, using peat and sphagnum, and drainage 
must be carefully attended to, as a good supply of water should be given 
during the season of growth. The best place for it is at the cool end of 
the Cattleya house. The illustration was taken from a plant in the Cam¬ 
bridge Botanic Garden, received there from Glasgow by the liberality of 
Mr. Robert Bullen.—R. I. Lynch, Cambridge Botanic Garden. 
THE CUCUMBER DISEASE. 
The head gardener and myself feel very much indebted to you for 
your answer and illustration in regard to the diseased Cucumber roots, 
and pressure of work has caused the delay in acknowledging the same. 
We followed out your advice, and turned out the plants, soil, and every¬ 
thing attached close to them. 
We procured soil and manure from different localities, and I am very 
pleased indeed to be able to state that we have now at the present time 
one of the finest crop of Cucumbers that ever was grown. I have seen 
large crops photographed to push forward some particular kind, but 
never have we seen anything to equal what we have hanging at the 
present time, although it is only seven and five weeks respectively since 
the plants were planted into their present quarters. 
I may here add that we have several kinds in the same house—viz., 
Telegraph, Telephone, Paragon, Metcalf’s, and Duke of Albany ; but the 
best in quality and productiveness are Telegraph, Duke of Albany, 
Paragon, and Telephone. Paragon being an excellent kind will be much 
grown by us in the future, but Metcalf’s will not again be attempted, as 
with us it is much below the average.—H. H., York. 
This most troublesome (so-called) Cucumber disease—the blistering 
and decay of the foliage—according to my experience, is easily prevented. 
One or two correspondents came very near my views lately, one recom¬ 
mending fresh soil and fumigating, the other fresh soil and quicklime ; 
but my remedy is to give this plant healthy food and air from first to 
grow in. The best that I can get is loam, such as green sods off a road¬ 
side, or the edging of the walks chopped roughly with the spade and put 
in the frame or house as required. This, with free ventilation as the 
weather permits, will give good returns. I am convinced this affection of 
the Cucumbers is caused by superabundance of the gases evaporating from 
unhealthy soil and confined in the frames.— Geo. Murray, The Gardens, 
West Asliby Manor, Horncastle. 
[We suspect our correspondent has not had to combat the terrible 
disease that for so long baffled the efforts of such excellent cultivators as 
Mr. William Taylor when at Longleat, and Mr. Harding at Orton Hall, 
and others to subdue it.l 
MR. SLAUGHTER’S ROSE GARDEN. 
Is there a rosarian who has not heard of the name and fame of Mr. 
Alfred Slaughter ? Within the last three years he has made such a sensa¬ 
tion in the Rose world, that questions have been raised as to where and 
how he grows such beautiful flowers. Curiosity has been further 
stimulated when Mr. Slaughter has openly avowed that all his Roses were 
produced from a small garden barely one-eighth of an acre in extent. 
Experienced growers were incredulous. They who grew Roses by the 
acre, and who sometimes found themselves not up to form on show days, 
believed it was simply impossible. Determined to satisfy myself, I, with 
my friend Mr. John Sargant of Reigate, well skilled in the secrets of Rose¬ 
growing, and equally desirous to see how such results as Mr. Slaughter 
achieves were attained, took the train to Steyning on the Gth inst., and 
surprised Mr. Slaughter in his preparations for the National Rose Show. 
He received us most courteously and at once conducted us over his garden, 
and explained his method of cultivating the Rose for exhibition. What 
a strange sight presented itself ! Fancy might have led us to expect one 
blaze of bloom. We looked in vain. Instead of Roses, we saw, indeed, 
a tiny garden, looking more like a refuge for old rush hats, tin pots, and 
decayed umbrellas. Then there was an appearance of bushes in curl 
papers. These with sundry other contrivances we found to be merely 
protections from the blazing sun, for underneath of most of these hats, 
pots, and umbrellas was a blushing Rose, and in the curl papers a lovely 
Tea, safe and snug, waiting to be removed to the exhibition box. 
11 will now describe the garden. It is a triangular piece of ground really 
but one-eighth of an acre in extent, on a slope facing the north-west. 
The trees are planted but 1 foot apart with 2 feet between the rows ; each 
tree is only allowed to make from five to nine shoots, and every shoot is 
tied out to a stick, while all side ones are promptly removed; conse¬ 
quently the strength of the plant is concentrated on a few flowers. The 
ground is the natural soil of the district, but heavily manured in the 
autumn and mulched in the spring with cow dung. The total number of 
plants is between 1400 and 1500. This is the whole of the material with 
which the results are achieved. “ The secret of my success,” Mr. Slaughter 
says, “is that I do everything myself. I bud, prune, and do all that is 
required. The only assistance I ever have is in watering. I work all the 
year round amongst my Roses and keep them always going. It is a. 
great mistake to neglect them at any time. By the plan I adopt I hardly 
have any bad blooms.” 
After all this is but simple common sense. A Rose is like a racehorse, 
which must be properly trained and ridden to win the race. Mr. 
Slaughter is to be compared to a good jockey who knows exactly what his 
horse can do. His practice disposes of the old theory that to be a success¬ 
ful prizewinner it is necessary to have a very large number of Roses. 
Quality, not quantity, is what he aims at, with the following results :—In 
1883 he won forty-four prizes and the trophy ; in 1884, thirty-eight 
prizes ; and this season he has gained already twenty-one prizes at six 
shows. At Tonbridge and Sutton he took the four first prizes, but at the 
