400 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
in the air, and have made middling-sized pseudo-bulbs, 
they should be potted. The best plants we ever saw of 
them, were grown by Mr. Basset, gardener to R. S. Hol- 
ford, Esq., at Weston Birt, Gloucestershire. They were 
grown in the simplest stuff imaginable, nothing, in fact, 
but broken crocks. The pots were wider than usual at 
the top, and the plants were set, as it were, in the 
midst of the crocks, care being taken that the buds at 
the base of the pseudo-bulbs were left uncovered. The 
roots were running about on the surface, and amongst 
the crocks, quite freely and healthily, and the pseudo¬ 
bulbs appeared to grow stronger and stronger each 
successive season, the plants had flowered and ap¬ 
peared to be quite happy and at home. We are trying 
this somewhat novel compost, and our plants are 
evidently improving. Yet we do entirely depend upon 
this method, for we remember our friend, Mr. P. Don, 
tried growing orchids of all kinds, in crocks, and found 
it did not answer. Therefore, we grow part of our stock 
in a compost of very fibrous peat, half-decayed leaves, 
chopped sphagnum, broken pots and charcoal, all mixed 
together, draining extra well, and raising the plants up 
on a hillock in the centre of the pots on the compost, 
securing them well till they get established with stoutish 
sticks. These precautions are taken to prevent the roots 
from rotting at the ends, which they are very apt to 
do, if cultivated in a careless or common way. They 
will grow on blocks best, but in that way do not obtain 
sufficient nutriment to produce large pseudo-bulbs, 
without which they will not produce flowers. As they 
are natives of warm climates, they require great heat 
when growing, even as high as 80 to 85 degrees by day, 
and 75 by night, but when at rest, 10 or 15 degrees 
lower will be sufficient. T. Appleby. 
(To be Continued.) 
FLORISTS' FLOWERS. 
MR. GLENNY ON FLORISTS’ FLOWERS. 
The comments which appear under this head are 
displeasing to some persons, but only to those who would 
be benefited by contrary decisions. We regret giving 
annoyance to any one, but we must pursue our honest 
course without regarding anything but the attainment 
of truth. We shall continue to select for our readers 
what we consider the best of everything, and if they limit 
their purchases to the varieties we recommend, no matter 
whether in fruit, flowers, plants, or vegetables, they may 
rest assured they will waste but little upon bad things, 
and miss few, if any, good ones. When, first and last, 
considerably more than one hundred Dahlias were 
actually advertised last season as first class varieties, 
what was the amateur to do? He could not rely on the 
vendor’s description, because all were said to be good 
form ,fine this, splendid that, and grand the other, and 
more than half were warranted to be the best in their class. 
What could we do but honestly select a score or so of 
the best, fairly describe them, and leave the public to 
“ do as they list?” May we not, with satisfaction, point to 
the result? Has our description proved incorrect? 
Which of the hundred we refused to notice at all has 
proved worthy of a place in the garden of an amateur? 
j All we regret is, that there are persons who, notwith¬ 
standing our caution, buy everything we describe as if 
we adopted them all; whereas we only describe them as 
the best among many bad ones, because they are to be 
put out as first-rate varieties, and have, perhaps, had 
, sundry certificates; but our descriptions are not all alike 
; tempting, though they are alike just. A dead set, it is 
! true, has been made at the Dahlia King by some. Great 
pains have been taken to show it in a bad state, to run 
; it down ; but, notwithstanding this, it has proved itself 
[September 25. 
the most perfect model in cultivation, although it docs 
not attain the size which a vitiated taste seems to de¬ 
mand ; and we have been doomed to see, all through the 
season, head prizes run away with by coarse specimens, 
which were bad in the outline, low in the centres, and 
quilly in the face, although evidently submitted to all 
manner of poking to open their puckering petals, and a 
system of dressing to which no gentleman would submit, 
if the respectable amateurs do not by some means check 
this, the Dahlia will decline. Whether this check is to 
be by making new classes with a limitation to the size, 
or by the taste of properly-constituted censors, we are 
yet to guess; but there is neither art nor credit in grow¬ 
ing large flowers, size is invariably attended with coarse¬ 
ness; and unless those who wish to see their gardens 
neat, and their plants natural, their borders free from 
props and tables, shades and inverted pots, can devise 
some means of exhibiting flowers for compactness, sym¬ 
metry, and form, instead of size, they must submit to be 
beaten by flowers grown large, but which have no other 
recommendation. The present season introduces us to 
several other flowers, which may not be acceptable to 
the dealers in monsters. Dr. Frampton and Sir F. 
Thesiger are models in their way; but they may not please 
those who seem to have but one notion, and that a 
coarse one. Dr. Frampton is especially a model—we 
have already noticed it—a light flower, as complete 
as The King, but without the King’s great fault, a 
reflexed petal. Still, unless we can break the neck of 
the washing-tub system of showing, these models will be 
useless. Sir F. Thesiger is one of the best rose-colours 
in cultivation; there is no pale, sickly centre, no fading 
outside; it is a dense colour from centre to base, with¬ 
out a shade of difference between the unopened petals 
in the middle and the under row of all. We only men¬ 
tion these things in illustration of our objections to the 
barbarous system of judging Dahlias by the foot. The 
very best of the large flowers in many stands have had 
petals standing out, or at least uncovered, more like the 
bowls of teaspoons than petals of flowers; and we do 
hope and trust that if vulgar tastes are to be pampered 
by the exhibition of mops, Societies will also cater for 
the true florist, and make a separate class for form and 
symmetry, or secure judges who will uphold the true 
principles of floriculture. We are fully aware of the 
unpopularity of small flowers, and of the stand which 
will bo made against them by people whose soil and 
situation produce them large, but unless wc are prepared 
to abandon form, doubleness, symmetry, and compact¬ 
ness, something must be done, otherwise we shall soon be 
divided into two classes of amateurs: one class who can 
depend on each other for showing with taste and fair¬ 
ness naturally-grown flowers from their own gardens, 
and another that rely upon all manner of trickery, 
dressing, and disguising, for their success. We are 
exceedingly anxious to see gentlemen who have aban¬ 
doned the pursuit, and deserted the exhibition, induced 
to return to it, but it cannot be expected they will sub¬ 
mit to compete with those who resort to unfair means to 
obtain prizes. Hundreds who entered into the spirit of \ 
showing have given up growing Dahlias, except as I 
border flowers; and unless exhibitions can be brought 
back to the indulgence of a wholesome and honourable 
emulation we shall lose many more. Dealers must 
uphold the principles of floriculture, and not pander to 
coarse tastes, before honourable men will venture to 
show. Let any reasonable man ask himself what situa¬ 
tion he would have been in had he bought all that have 
been warranted to be good? His Dahlia bill alone 
would have been sixty pounds, and he would not have 
had five pounds worth growing the next year. It will 
take a little fortune to buy only those which have had 
certificates and commendations from Societies ; and when 
bought, not one in three would be found so good as we 
