460 
THE GAKDENING WORLD. 
March 17, 1888. 
quantity, and presents a mass of snowy purity. 
Marchioness of Exeter is in fine condition at present, 
fully double, floriferous, white, and generally dotted or 
finely striped with pink and purple. 
Potato, Beauty of Hebron. 
I hope I do not encroach on your space while making 
a few remarks upon this well-known Potato. I gave it 
a trial in my garden last year, and it gave the greatest 
satisfaction. I planted it beside Magnum Bonum, but 
there was a great deal of difference between the two. 
In order to give a little idea of their size, I weighed 
three of the Beauty of Hebron, when they turned the 
scale at 4 lbs. When lifted they seemed to turn out 
pretty well of one average size ; and the dry weather 
did not affect them in the least. Magnum Bonum 
turned out very small compared with these. The soil 
in -which they grew was rather heavy, and has had no 
manure for six or seven years previously—being a 
cottager’s garden we cannot manure very heavily. I 
advise any of your readers who are about to plant this 
spring to give the Potato above-mentioned a fair trial, 
as I cannot find anything to surpass it myself.— 
Edward Barber, Bromley, Kent. 
Tabernasmontana coronaria. 
I have four plants of Taberntemontana coronaria fiore 
pleno about five or six years old ; they measure 2 ft. 
through and about 2 ft. high, and although they grow 
very well and look very healthy I am not able to 
bloom them as they ought to do. I potted them 
last spring in 12-in. pots, in a mixture of one-third 
fibry peat to two-tliirds fibry turf, with a liberal amount 
of sand, and placed about 2-in. of drainage at the 
bottom. The plants grew and set very well, with 
scores of buds on each plant ; but just when the buds 
begin to swell and show white, they drop off. The 
plants continue to grow and set with bud, but not one 
in fifty opens. I have no difficulty in growing the 
plants ; the difficulty is in blooming them. It has 
been the same every year ; the plants always begin to 
push out new growth before the buds open, and when 
the new growth has got about lj-in. long then the buds 
turn yellow and drop off. I have tried one plant 
plunged in bottom heat with no better results. I have 
a Stephanotis floribunda in the same house which 
blooms very well, the house being kept at about 60° to 
70° in winter and 75° to 85° in summer. The plants 
have been resting all this winter, and I have not potted 
or started them yet. My house is a span-roof, facing 
the south. I shall take it as a favour if some 
practical grower would give me some information and 
instructions on the treatment of this plant, and say 
where I am wrong in their culture. Do they require 
much syringing, or do they need much water ? Also, is 
pruning necessary before starting 1—Flore Pleno. 
Begonia Carrierei. 
Fp.om what we have seen of this, it is equally service¬ 
able as a summer bedding plant or as a winter-flowering 
subject. It is blooming now, and has been for a great 
part of the winter, in Messrs. H. Cannell & Sons’ 
nursery, at Swanley, Kent. The stems are dwarf, 
bushy and branching, flowering profusely enough to 
make the plant conspicuous and attractive. The indi¬ 
vidual blooms are small compared with those of the 
popular tuberous-rooted species ; but being white edged 
with pink, and produced in such abundance, the plant 
becomes very serviceable and distinct for winter¬ 
flowering in the conservatory. We also noted it last 
year in another garden, where it was used as an edging 
to a flower-bed in the open ground. It appeared even 
dwarfer under this treatment, and extremely floriferous, 
the Picotee-edged flowers being very charming. 
A Large Pteris. 
The large form of Pteris serrulata, and named P. s. 
cristata major, is generally known as the Chiswick 
variety from its having originated there. Those in quest 
of something good, and that would grow to massive pro¬ 
portions, would find a suitable subject in this variety 
of a form which is on the whole extremely variable. 
There is a specimen at Devonhurst, Chiswick, which 
measures about 7 ft. or 8 ft. in diameter, and would 
occupy the whole width of the central stage of a 
respectable-sized house. The plant itself fills a large 
pot, and the massively crested fronds which droop on 
all sides are individually of great length. Such a 
specimen as this would have a commanding effect if 
stood in a prominent position in a large Fernery, or 
planted out where the beholder could obtain a good 
view of it. 
The Golden Crocus. 
There are several yellow Crocuses, some of which are 
very attractive and showy ; but C. chrysanthus deserves 
attention for more reasons than one. In size it is 
inferior to that of C. aureus leuteus, which rivals 
the common C. vernus, and flowers at the same 
time ; but it may, however, be compared to the Cloth 
of Gold (C. susianus), and flowers equally early if not 
earlier. The segments never become revolute as in the 
latter, but form a regular cup, suddenly contracting 
into the slender tube. The typical form has bright 
golden yellow flowers, but an equally attractive variety 
named C. chrysanthus fusco-lineatus, is heavily and 
beautifully flamed and lined with dark brown, almost 
black colour. There are several other varieties, and 
all of them we should strongly recommend to those who 
delight in hardy subjects in pots. Owing to their early 
flowering character, they can be got into bloom under 
protection without any forcing whatever. We noticed 
some in a cold frame the other day, in the gardens 
of the Royal Horticultural Society, Chiswick, and 
which, from the brown colour of the basal part of the 
perianth, evidently belongs to the variety C. c. fusco- 
tinctus. __ 
ORCHID NOT ES AND GLEANINGS. 
DENDROBIUM NOBILE COOKSONI. 
In answer to your inquiry regarding the length of time 
I have had the plant of this Dendrobium I may say that 
I am not certain ; but about three years ago I noticed a 
plant of D. nobile Wallichianum with malformed 
flow'ers, the rich colour cf the labellum almost entirely 
covering the petals. The shape of the flower prevented 
it expanding, and I thought it unlikely that it would 
occur again. In the following year it bloomed, and 
showed some improvement inform, but still monstrous, 
with the petals only half expanded. This year the 
same plant flowered again, the improvement in form 
being very marked, although still unable to expand its 
petals like D. nobile. The flower I sent you was taken 
from a cutting of the original plant, and being more 
vigorous, the flower expanded much better. I may say 
that about twenty years ago I began with three speci¬ 
mens of D. nobile, and during that time have not 
added any to the stock by importation or otherwise, so 
that all our stock of D. nobile, which by propagation 
now fills a moderate-sized house, are the offspring of 
the three pots purchased about twenty years ago. One 
of the three pots contained a few plants of D. n. 
Wallichianum, and that is the variety I credit with 
the production of the sport.— Geo. Russell, The Gardens, 
Redlands, Glasgow. 
A Rare Angrzecum. 
Very few collections in this country can boast of 
A. polystachyum, yet it is considerably prettier than 
several others upon which considerable stress has been 
laid for some time past. It seems also to be easy of 
culture, and possesses great freedom of flowering. The 
stems are elongated, comparatively slender, with a 
short interval between each leaf, giving the plant 
somewhat the appearance of an Epidendrum, as in 
E. ellipticum, E. rhizophorum and others of that class, 
or like Renanthera coccinea. The flowers are plenti¬ 
fully produced in lateral racemes, springing apparently 
from the stem almost opposite to a leaf. Although 
considered small, they measure about 1 in. in diameter, 
pure white, tinted with green at the base and on the 
(for this genus) exceedingly short spur. The lip is the 
most conspicuous organ, and is rolled over the column, 
with a funnel-shaped and broad lamina, terminating in 
three teeth or lobes, the middle one of which is the 
longest. Besides the prettiness of the flowers them¬ 
selves, they last long in a cut state, and give off a 
delicious perfume night and day, whether the sun 
shines or not, the aroma being comparable to that of 
the old garden Pink. We noticed it lately in Mr. 
J. E. Bonny’s collection at Hextable, Kent. 
Phal/enopsis Sanderiana magnifica. 
The ordinary and commoner forms of P. Sanderiana 
are variously tinted with rose, but in the variety P. S. 
magnifica the petals assume a pure deep rose hue that is 
very engaging when the flowers are fully expanded. 
The sepals and lip are, on the other hand, much paler, 
but still so decided in tone that the white ground colour 
of those organs is warmly suffused with rose. The lower 
part of the lip, particularly on the side lobes, is marked 
with short brown yellow stripes and spots. Coloured 
Phalsmopsids of this type are very attractive, and the 
pity is we do not get something similar in P. grandiflora. 
The variety under notice we saw in flower the other 
day in the nurseries of Messrs. Hugh Low & Co. 
Dendrobium Wardianum giganteum. 
At Victoria House, Dukinfield, Lancashire, the resi¬ 
dence of E. G. Wrigley, Esq., this variety, which is 
sometimes called “ Lowii,” may now be seen in splendid 
form. There are about twenty plants, carrying from 
ninety to 100 flowering bulbs, varying from 2 ft. to 
4 ft. 3 ins. in length, with from twenty to thirty-six 
fully expanded flowers on the various bulbs, or a grand 
total of 1,500 blooms ; one plant alone has twenty 
flowering bulbs, carrying 160 of its most beautiful 
flowers. A true form of Dendrobium Brymerianum, 
carrying many flowers, is also a conspicuous object, the 
fringe to the lip being 1^ in. long. D. heterocarpum 
(aureum) has on eight growths a total of sixty-four 
flowers ; and D. primulinum giganteum, D. Devon- 
ianum, D. Pierardi latifolium, D. crassinode Barberi- 
anum, and other varieties are also doing equally well. 
A grand specimen of Ccelogyne cristata (variety Lemon- 
iana), with twenty-four spikes, and from five to seven 
flowers to the spike, or a total of ninety flowers, has 
also a pleasing effect.— I. 
Cattleya Trianze, Lady Tennant. 
We have again received from Messrs. William Thomson 
& Sons, of Clovenfords, Galashiels, a flower of this 
charming variety. In many even good varieties of this 
Cattleya the rich colouring is confined to the lip ; but 
in this case the sepals are a warm rose, not a washed- 
out colour. The petals are of great size, crisped at the 
margin, and of a deeper shade than the sepals, with a 
deep purple midrib and reticulations in the upper or 
apical part. The tube of the lip is of the same warm 
colour, but the limb itself is of an intense dark purple, 
with the colour running down into the tube in the form 
of a wedge, which has the effect of making the golden 
blotch in the throat to be two-parted. At the orifice 
the golden yellow gives place to white. The flower 
altogether is of a superb character. 
A Fine Dendrobium. 
A bold and richly-coloured form of Dendrobium nobile 
also comes from Messrs. Thomson & Sons. We meet 
with hundreds of specimens without ever seeing any so 
meritorious. The flowers measure somewhat over 3 ins. 
across the petals, while the latter individually are 
close upon 1 in. in width. The upper half of each 
is of a deep purple colour, as are the tips of the sepals. 
The substance is good and the blooms durable. Hot 
the least effective part of the flower is the labellum, the 
broad white band surrounding the orifice of which 
shows up well against the dark background formed by 
the organs surrounding it. The large basal blotch is 
very intense, and of a rich blackish purple. Two or 
three flowers from each of the lateral spurs of the 
pseudo-bulbs, which are about 30 ins. in length, have a 
telling effect. It is a grand form. 
Odontoglossum elegantius. 
Amongst cool Odontoglossums is the place for this new 
and reputed natural hybrid, whose parentage is believed 
to he O. Lindleyana, and O. Pescatorei. The bifid or 
forked crest recalls the first mentioned, while the lip is 
contracted at the sides similarly to that of O. Pescatorei. 
The sepals, petals, and lip are spotted brownish purple 
on a pale ground ; and the plant adds another to the 
long list, the history of which we shall probably never 
be able to unfold. We had the pleasure of seeing it 
in the nurseries of Messrs. Hugh Low & Co., Clapton. • 
-- 
The Gardeners’ Calendar. 
THE GREENHOUSE. 
Cinerarias. —Where early batches are grown these 
will now be past their best—a matter that is not to be 
regretted, seeing that the main batches are now coming 
on rapidly, and are, as might naturally be expected, 
altogether better plants. Before they are taken to the 
conservatory or show house, see that the plants are 
thoroughly free from insects, green-fly especially, which 
soon spreads, greatly to the disadvantage of this class 
of plants particularly. Fumigate if there is the least 
suspicion of the pest, and before fresh plants have time 
to be affected. 
Chinese Primulas. —Those who intend saving seed 
of choice kinds, or to attempt the improvement of those 
grown, should set about the work at once, cross-breed¬ 
ing those which are likely to give something better, or 
infusing certain good qualities into others which it 
may he desirable to perpetuate. In all cases where 
seeds are desired, success is rendered far more certain 
by having recourse to artificial fertilisation. In order 
that this year’s experience may be a guide to those of 
next, it would repay the trouble of putting marks of 
some kind, or, what is better, figures, of which a record 
