May 15, 1886. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
587 I 
pots. He said : “You won’t succeed with ’em in that 
way if you don’t keep ’em dry enough, aud hot enough ; 
I used to grow ’em like that, but they gradually 
dwindled away, and I’ve lost ’em all now. I couldn’t 
keep ’em hot enough ! ” It was plain to me how he had 
lost them ; but any attempt of mine to point out the 
cause of failure to him would have only given offence, 
so I held my peace. What I wished to warn your 
readers against at p. 555, were the extremes of heat 
and moisture, and Mr. Jenkins, in the latter part of 
his remarks, admits the necessity for a certain amount 
of both, although at the commencement he condemns 
the application of either artificial heat or water. In a 
general sense it is immaterial whether the corms are 
O 
stored away in boxes and covered with cocoa-nut fibre, 
which absorbs and retains moisture, and placed in 
cellars or sheds from which frost is excluded by natural 
or artificial means, or whether they are stored away in 
a greenhouse artificially heated, and from which frost 
is excluded, and in the pots they have grown in. But 
as I condemn the use of a cellar for all the plants Mr. 
Jenkins enumerates—not even excepting the Potatos, 
which in this case I suppose to be for “seed”—on 
account of their being “ out of sight,” and, therefore, 
“ out of mind,” and apt to be forgotten sometimes, and 
also some cellars being too cold and too moist for the 
safe-keeping of the corms and tubers mentioned ; and 
lastly, but not least, because I am not a believer in 
the absolute cessation of the vital functions of plants 
during what is termed their dormant or resting period, 
and, therefore, think that such things as Potatos (seed), 
Dahlias and Begonias especially should be stored where 
their incipient growths can receive some light, and 
Gladioli, Tigridias, &c., kept under the eye of the cul¬ 
tivator. — Reader. 
Peas.—Mr. Gilbert asks if your readers will state 
how their Peas have come up, and as this is an im¬ 
portant crop with me, I furnish particulars of them so 
far. William I. and American Wonder, sown as a first 
crop, are all that can be desired. Champion of England 
for second crop are very poor and thin. Dr. McLean 
follows, and of this I should not think a seed failed ; 
and as this is a favourite with me, I have three sowings 
of it in succession. Duke of Albany, a new variety, of 
which I have a 100 ft. row from two of the small 
sealed packets, are just up and make a nice row.—A 1 . 
Dumper. 
Choisya ternata.—Yourcorrespondent“ W. G.,” 
in calling attention to this old-fashioned plant, rightly 
says it wants no coddling. Last spring I planted two 
plants out at the foot of -west walls, where they are now 
growing, and have stood throughout the winter without 
the slightest protection. The most severe frost has 
been 16°. That may give anyone who may feel inclined 
to give it a trial as an outdoor shrub some idea of its 
hardiness j and to show how it will do thus treated, I 
send herewith a flowering shoot, which is a foreright 
one, and it will speak for itself. The spring has not 
been the most favourable. I may say, without di¬ 
gressing from the subject, that it is more hardy than 
Tea Roses, as the latter in the same position lost a good 
lot of young growth. I do not attribute this to the 
severity of the winter, but the lack of sun to solidify 
the growths in the autumn ; but as the Choisya was in 
the same position, it had exactly the same disadvan¬ 
tages to contend with.— E. Dumper. 
- — - 
The Gardeners’ Calendar. 
THE PLANT HOUSES. 
All the plants in the stoves should now be in active 
growth, and to keep them in good condition more air 
must be admitted, so that the foliage may be of a good 
substance, and not of that flimsy character frequently 
seen where the roasting treatment is adopted ; front air 
may be freely given, so that there may be a free circu¬ 
lation to ensure a purer atmosphere. The early batch 
of Gloxinias are now going over, and will be removed 
into a cold pit facing south to thoroughly ripen ; the 
lights will be sparingly ventilated for a few days, but 
water must not be altogether withheld until the foliage 
denotes rest. Towards the middle of August these 
roots will start again, and they will be found most 
useful for staging in the warmer houses during autumn, 
when there is a greater charm about them than in what 
may be termed their natural season. 
It is a great pity their flowers carry so badly as to 
make them useless for cutting purposes, if they have to 
travel any distance. The Poinsettias have made sufficient 
growth, and must be shaken out and repotted without 
further delay, or they will receive a severe check which 
should be avoided ; the cuttings which were put in 
should become well rooted before being interfered with, 
or most of them will die off. The pots of Euphorbia 
Jaequinteflora if grown as previously advised, will now 
need a good shift, and they may be removed into a 
warm pit such as where Cucumbers are growing, here 
they-will make a much more satisfactory growth than 
if kept in the stove. 
Remove all bedding stuff from the pits to the ash 
borders out of doors as soon as it can be hardened-off, 
allowing only such things as Dahlias, Coleus, Zinnias, 
and PeriUas shelter in case of late frost, of which we 
are experiencing a full share, having more or less every 
night. We have already planted-out our Neapolitan 
Violets, and have also made a new plantation of “The 
Czar these two varieties, though somewhat ancient, 
we find best suited to our requirements. Be careful 
that the potting of Balsams, Celosias, and such-like 
plants is not too long delayed, as they never make 
good specimens if allowed to become pot-bound. Look 
to the tying-in of all creepers before they become en¬ 
tangled ; particularly attend in this respect to the old 
Tropteolum tricolorum^ now but little grown. 
THE FORCING HOUSES. 
All in this department still continues on the high- 
pressure principle. Thinning of the Grapes is con¬ 
tinued as long during the day as can be borne, but still 
the order is, “you must stick to the thinning,” or the 
Grapes will become too crowded ; aud yet from 4 a. m. 
until 9 p.m. ought to keep matters straight, but it 
barely does so. The Muscats are swelling away 
amazingly ; we have given them two or three good 
soakings of water, liberally using guano, and they 
evidently appreciate our attention. The foliage, too, 
is of that dark green leathery sort, so pleasant for 
growers to look at. 
The ventilators must now be freely used—we open the 
first thing—or a visit from thrip and red spider may be 
surely expected. Many growers syringe their Vines up 
to the time colouring commences, but we do not like the 
plan, as, in the first place, unless the water is very pure 
the fruit becomes spotted, and nothing will remove the 
stain, and again, grapes so syringed never carry a good 
bloom, in my opinion a serious failing. Damp down 
the walks and inside the borders four or five times a 
day, closing in good time. Of course, where the Grapes 
are approaching ripeness, the house should only be 
damped down about mid-day, and air should be left on 
always both front and top, taking care that mice and 
birds do not obtain access. 
Peach trees continue to grow apace, and need more 
attention than we are just now able to bestow, still 
the watering is not neglected, and we hope to give them 
due attention shortly. The Strawberry shelves will 
require frequently renewing, as after the best of the 
fruit is gathered, the plants are far better removed to a 
cold pit, from where the fruit may be gathered, and a 
fresh batch introduced, by tbis means much red-spider 
is avoided. The early Melons are netting, and we have 
renewed the bottom-heat. This is most important just 
at that time, as without good bottom-heat perfect 
netting is impossible with most varieties, notably the 
Victory of Bath section. Where house-room is required 
for Melons, Cucumbers should be grown in the frames, 
and we have raised a stock of plants for the purpose. 
THE KITCHEN GARDEN. 
In this department all is activity, for although frosty 
nights prevail, the weather being so dry it is not so 
much felt as if showers were frequent. We are running 
the Dutch hoe through all the seed-beds, partly to 
prevent the weeds, but equally as much to prevent the 
drought taking effect, our soil being of a heavy nature 
it is speedily felt; so far we have not watered any out¬ 
door crops but we cannot hold out many days longer, 
so we hope for rain which we much need ; we sowed 
our last batch of Peas and Beans, which consisted of 
Ne Plus Ultra and Improved Windsor, and also a 
breadth of Dwarf French Beans, consisting of Improved 
Red Valentine, a stringless variety, Canadian Wonder, 
and Pale Dun, the ground for next sowing being under 
crop will be prepared as soon as possible. 
We have not planted out Brussels Sprouts or spring 
sown Cauliflower, the weather preventing us. If not 
already done the bed should be made for the Vegetable 
Marrows, as if kept too long in the pots they do not 
start so readily ; our early batch is fruiting nicely. 
The Curled and Asparagus Kale if not cut hard will 
quickly run to flower ; if the supply is too great reduce 
it at once rather than allow it to impoverish the soil ; 
give the square a good dressing of manure and prepare 
it for summer crops, such as French Beans, Turnips, 
Spinach, and so on. 
-- 
BIRMINGHAM ORCHID SHOW, 
May 12th and IWi. 
The schedule provided for this exhibition, some 
comments on which will be found in another column, 
was not an extensive one, but was carefully considered, 
and the prizes were of sufficient value to induce Orchid 
growers in the neighbourhood to test the merits of their 
favourites in competition. The principal class was 
that for a group of twenty distinct Orchids, open to all 
growers ; the prizes being £15, £10, and £6. There 
■were four other classes for groups of ten and six plants 
from nurserymen and amateurs, the prizes ranging 
from £8 to £2. Two classes were devoted to Odonto- 
glossums, two to Cattleyas or Lcelias, one to Masde- 
vallias, and one to cut flowers of Orchids ; the prizes 
in these varying from £6 to £1, or a total of £150. 
One of the large new houses in the Botanic Gardens 
was devoted to the groups of Orchids, and a charming 
effect was the result of Mr. W. B. Latham’s careful 
and tasteful arrangement. The bright flowers of the 
Orchids were softened by a number of Ferns and foliage 
plants furnished by Mr. Hans Niemand, Harborne 
Road Nurseries, who also contributed a beautiful group 
of miscellaneous plants. Every care was taken to dis¬ 
pose the Orchids to the best advantage, and to effect 
this it became necessary in some cases to place exhibits 
in the same classes somewhat widely apart, but this 
was not done wherever it could be avoided. The 
display was far better than could have been expected, 
and the Birmingham Orchid growers have every reason 
to be proud of their first Orchid show, which it may be 
hoped will prove one of a successful series. There was 
only one element wanting to render the occasion all 
that could be desired, and that was favourable weather, 
and all concerned in the show had occasion to regret 
that such change had occurred from the weather of the 
preceding week. 
In the principal class, namely, that for a group of 
twenty plants, Mr. James Cypher, Cheltenham, took 
the lead with well-grown specimens of good varieties, the 
best being the following:—Cattleya Skinneri oculata, 
with twenty-eight fine flowers ; Oncidium concolor, nine 
spikes ; Odontoglossum Roezli, Cattleya Mossiee grandi- 
flora, Anguloa Clowesi, Cypripedium biflorum, twenty 
eight flowers ; Cypripedium Lawreneeanum, twenty 
three fine flowers ; Dendrobium thyrsiflorum, with forty 
spikes, a grand specimen ; Lselia purpurata, thirteen 
flowers ; and Dendrobium chrysotoxum. A. W. 
Wills, Esq. (gardener, Mr. James Morgan), was a close 
second with smaller plants, but very fresh and brightly 
coloured ; Dendrobium Falconeri being represented by 
a splendid variety, the flowers of great size and finely 
coloured ; and Ltelia majalis, not an easily-flowered 
Orchid, bore three fine blooms. Class two was for ten 
specimens (amateurs), and the prizes were awarded to 
the four exhibitors in the order named : C. Winn, Esq. 
(gardener, Mr. G. Barnes), the Right Hon. Joseph 
Chamberlain, M.P. (gardener, Mr. E. Cooper), and 
Joshua Fellowes, Esq., an extra prize going to E. 
Wright, Esq. (gardener, Mr. Hodges), all having 
capital plants, the flowers very abundant, and the 
varieties select. Mr. James Cypher was first in class 
three for ten plants, showing similar plants to those 
which gained him the honours in the first class. The 
Right Hon. J. Chamberlain had the best six plants in 
class four, Dendrobiums, Ltelias, especially Lielia 
purpurata being very fine; Messrs. Winn and E. 
Wright were 2nd and 3rd. In class five Mr. Cypher 
was again the most successful exhibitor, and he took 
similar prizes in classes seven for Odontoglossums ; nine 
for Cattleyas and Lfelias, and cut Orchids. The best 
amateur’s collection of Odontoglossums came from Mr. 
C. Winn, representing cirrhosum, triumphans, 
citrosmum, Alexandra, Cervantesi, pranitens, luteo- 
purpureum, vexillarium, and tripudians. Mr. J. 
Fellowes being second with smaller but equally pretty 
plants in pans and baskets. Mr. C. Winn was first 
with Cattleyas and Lrelias in the amateurs’ class, 
followed by the Right Hon. J. Chamberlain, M.P. 
