THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
January 29. 
272 
plants, and place them on a shelf near the. glass till they 
begin to grow, then water them, and place them amongst 
the general collection. After they have made the lirst 
new pseudo-bulbs, put them in baskets, and troat them 
like the established plants. 
Acropera. —By divisions of the whole plant, potted 
and treated like the established ones. 
Akrides. —This beautiful genus requires to be pro¬ 
pagated by taking off young sboots that have already 
pushed forth young roots for themselves. These may 
be put immediately into baskets proportioned to their 
size ; care, however, must be taken that the ends of the 
young roots are not bruised or injured. Some of the 
species will grow if the long stems are divided into 
lengths. Some three or four years ago, we had a tall 
plant of that line species, Aerides quinqucvulnera. It 
being valuable, wo felt desirous to try an experiment 
with it, which, on account of its great value, was some¬ 
what bold. The top had three or four nice young roots 
made the season previous. This top was cut off, and 
put into a smaller basket in sphagnum in the usual way; 
the lower part of the stem was cut into three lengths, 
each having two or three leaves, and also a living root: 
these cuttings were each put into small baskets, and 
during the succeeding summer tve had the pleasure of 
seeing a young shoot spring from each of them, thus 
giving us four plants instead of ono. Encouraged by 
this success, some other species of the same genus were 
subjected to the same experiment, but, we are sorry to 
add, not with the same success. Some pushed forth 
young shoots, but the greater part failed. The species 
we tried were A. crispum, and A. odoratum. It is more 
prudent, therefore, to wait till these and other species 
make young shoots with roots to them, before attempt¬ 
ing to increase them. 
Aganista pulchelt.a. —This plant sends out many 
branches and roots in the air, therefore, to increase it, 
take off one or more of the rooted branches, and treat it 
similar to the parent plant. 
Angr^ecum. —All the species of this genus may be 
increased by taking off young rooted shoots, tying them 
to a block, and when well established, placing the block 
in a basket or pot of sphagnum, like the parent plants. 
Axguloa.— 'The species of this genus are strong in 
growth. To increase the plants, pass a knife through 
the back bulbs when the forward ones are beginning to 
grow, let them remain in the pots undisturbed till they 
have made shoots, and perfected their first new pseudo¬ 
bulbs, then, at the tune of potting the succeeding 
season, separate these divisions from the old plants, 
pot them, and treat them in the usual way; they will 
flower the second year if well managed. T. Appleby. 
(To be continued.) 
OLD LESSONS ON DAHLIA GROWING. 
We frequently smile at the laborious efforts of treatise 
writers, whose chief difficulty seems to be to find dif¬ 
ferent words to express what they have themselves read, 
and afterwards wish to convoy. A man no sooner 
manages to get a few prizes for anything, than he must 
set up lor a writer, and instead of being grateful to his 
teacher, whose lessons commanded success, he sots up 
scribbling lor himselt, as though he were the original 
iounder of the practice which lie recommends. 
The Dahlia lessons of 1852, may be comprised in 
the following hints :—The soil should be rich enough to 
grow good cabbages and cauliilowers, and be trenched 
two feet deep. If, therefore, the grouud is poor, well dress 
it. As we have the plants in small pots all ready for 
planting out towards the end of May, we should lirst 
drive stakes into the ground at six feet distance from 
each other, firmly and uniformly, leaving four feet 
standing out of the earth, then with a trowel make 
holes close to the stakes, and let the ball of earth be 
planted with the surface two inches under the level of 
the ground, but not much covered—of course it will be 
in a slight hollow that will hold water; put proper 
labels, or mark the numbers on the stake; let them be 
watered at the time, and also occasionally, after plant¬ 
ing, if the weather prove dry, but all the ground should 
be soaked, instead of water being put to each plant. As 
these plants grow, they must be well supported, not 
merely to the stake, but to other props, if necessary, and 
if any plants run up much, take away the top of the 
leader. 
With regard to pruning the plants, all weakly and all 
cross branches should be taken off close, and plenty of 
light and air should be admitted : the growth, beyond 
any bloom that is wanted, should be taken away,and the 
side branches should all be stopped, so that the strength 
may be thrown into the flowers. The exception to this 
rule should be any of those large varieties which would 
be too coarse if grown strong. Of course the shewers 
who deem size to bo the only desirable point, prop up 
tables, through which, by means of a slit from the edge 
to the centre hole, they bring the bud to the centre, and 
cover with a pot. The effect of this is to produce 
edged and blush flowers white and out of character, 
and dirty or speckled yellows, pure. It would be well if 
flowers were obliged to be shown as they would grow 
in a gentleman’s garden, but according to the present 
taste, size is almost the only quality looked at favour¬ 
ably; and there is a sort of clique, comprising half-a- 
dozen dealers, and as many amateurs, who sweep off 
the prizes at all the shows—the clique of amateurs 
judging the dealers’ flowers, and the dealers judging the 
amateurs’; and so long as this is submitted to, so long 
will large, coarse monsters be made to win, over com¬ 
pact, symmetrical, double varieties, with perfect out¬ 
lines. 
Dahlias are shown now according to the plan laid 
down by the Metropolitan Society, on flat boards, with 
six-inch feet behind, and three-inch feet in front, painted 
green, with holes six inches apart, and the size which 
will hold the flowers in their travelling tubes, merely 
lifted out of the holes in the box, and dropped into the 
holes in the stand. The object of this was to make as 
little work as possible. But another fashion has come 
up, which has done more towards cheating the public 
than the artificial growing under shades, we mean the 
practice of dressing flowers, by which rough, ugly, 
quilled varieties are rendered all that need be wished, 
and people induced to buy them, though perfectly 
worthless to any but those who depend on such means. 
If dressing were not allowed, we should no longer 
see certificates given to sorts that are thrown away 
directly they are bloomed, and a hundred varieties thus 
aunually let loose upon the public for every half-dozen 
that are worth a gentleman’s money. A visit to any of 
the uniformly winning shewers will give a very good 
idea how a garden must be abandoned to every kind of 
prop, shade, and litter, and the plants skeletonized, to 
insure success, until we can make natural growth, com¬ 
pactness, symmetry and a perfect outline, beat coarse, 
overgrown, bruised, and manipulated monsters. 
When the flowers begin to decay in beauty, and 
decrease in size, so that the beauty of a plant is gone, 
the tuber may be lifted with a spade, so as to cut off 
the supply, but not taken up, nor the plant cut; in a 
day or two, if there were room, the plants might be cut 
off, and the tubers removed into the shade, stem down¬ 
wards, to drain out any moisture that may be in the 
hollow, and they should be kept so all through the 
winter, where they can be effectually protected from 
damp, heat, and frost. 
In the spring the amateur may not want more than 
two or three plants of a sort, in which case he may put 
