February 29, 1896. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
416 
positions were severally put to the meeting, and 
carried unanimously. 
Messrs. Poupart, Weeks, Bates, and Barron were 
then appointed scrutineers of the ballot for the 
election of ten children to the benefits of the fund. 
The poll was declared closed at four o’clock, soon 
after which the scrutineers returned and resumed 
their places at the table. Mr. Poupart, at the 
request of the Chairman, read out the results of the 
poll, which we tabulate as follows .—Henry Pearman 
Smith, 482 votes; Andrina Brown Ritchie, 475 ; 
Seymour Small, 389; Arthur Henry Worth, 384; 
Blanche Dean, 325 ; Amv Farrant, 315 ; Frederick 
Pratt, 250; Frank Leslie Haycock, 235 ; Herbert 
Anderson, 177 ; and Charles Reuben Stevens, 164. 
The Chairman declared the above ten children 
duly elected. He then said that 1,300 voting papers 
had been sent out, that 829 of them had been re¬ 
turned, and that 2,577 votes had been recorded. 
There were no spoilt papers, a fact which redounds 
to the credit and care of the voters. About twenty-five 
members sat down to the friendly dinner in the evening. 
THE ORCHID HOUSES. 
Shading. —The sun is becoming so powerful that it 
is impossible to keep the temperature down without 
having recourse to shading. To attempt to do so 
by putting on a lot of air top and bottom is one of 
the worst mistakes that can possibly be made. The 
plants under such circumstances dry up much too 
quickly, causing the pseudo-bulbs to shrivel. 
We manage to keep the temperature and atmos¬ 
pheric conditions nicely balanced by drawing out 
the fires on bright mornings, say about nine o’clock, 
and by running the blinds down for about two hours 
during the hottest part of the day. As yet they 
should not be down after two in the afternoon, when 
the fires are again started. This way of working 
the houses keeps the plants from starting too early 
into growth, and at the same time helps the 
pseudo-bulbs to retain their plumpness. 
East India House.— The above remarks apply 
very forcibly to this department also, for Phalae- 
nopses are very impatient of extremes in tempera¬ 
ture. Maintain a warm and buoyant atmosphere by 
keeping plenty of water about the floor and stages. 
If this is properly attended to the plants will not 
require so much water applied to their roots. 
Cattleya House, Vandas.— The roots of the 
members of this beautiful, but at present unfashion¬ 
able, genus are just now in an active state. The 
spikes, too, are just in sight, so that no time must be 
lost in getting those that require it top-dressed with 
some live sphagnum moss. 
The plants should be allowed to become moderately 
dry before picking out the old material and as many 
of the crocks as possible. The remaining crocks 
should then be thoroughly washed by syringing them 
with water of the same temperature as the house in 
which the plants are growing. The plants may be 
allowed to stand over until the next day, before 
filling up with fresh crocks, and finishing ofl with a 
good layer of fresh moss, all of which must be 
placed in the house a day before they are required 
for use so as to get warm. We find the roots take 
more kindly to the new moss when used in a 
moderately dry state. Very little water will be 
required, other than what is supplied by the syringe, 
when damping down, for, having fixed the blinds up 
as advised, they will not suffer by being unduly 
exposed to the influences of a dry harsh heat caused 
by bright sunshine. 
Cattleya Labiata.— Push along with the potting 
of this useful Cattleya, so as to give it every chance 
to make up good sound pseudo-bulbs. Peat alone, 
or peat and moss in equal parts, suits it well. One 
thing is certain, that the plants require some fresh 
material of one sort or the other if they are to be 
kept in condition. Pots or baskets suit them, pro- 
viding they get the necessary drainage, which must 
be ample, as they need plenty of moisture at the 
roots when growing.— C. 
THE PLAHT HOUSES. 
The Conservatory. 
Seldom, indeed, is it that the conservatory is 
favoured with such a favourable winter as 1895-96 
has been up to the present, Usually the weather is 
such as to necessitate the use of a great deal of fire 
heat, not only in forcing the necessary material into 
bloom, but in the conservatory itself, in order to 
keep the temperature up to the required standard. 
The inevitable result of this is that the flowers which 
are produced under the agency of a great deal of 
artificial heat, are much more flimsy in texture and 
delicate in constitution than those which are other¬ 
wise treated. In the show house, too, their lives are 
still further shortened by the aridity of the atmos¬ 
phere. Then again, there is the task of shifting the 
plants from the forcing houses to the show house, 
which, as likely as not, is situated some considerable 
distance away. During the prevalence of keen frosts 
or cold, biting winds this is often a very heavy and 
laborious task, for so fragile are these children of the 
gardener's art that they will not stand much of 
winter's biting breath. The temperature in the con¬ 
servatory may be kept up to about 45 0 by night, and 
will rise to about 55 0 on sunny days. Air must be 
given as freely as possible without the causing of 
draughts. The ventilators on the sunny side of the 
house only should be opened, for if the sun is bright, 
the chances are that the wind will be rather cold. 
Chinese Primulas may be made to look present¬ 
able for some time longer if they are picked over 
occasionally, and the old blooms removed. It must 
be remembered that the use of the watering-can is 
one of the most important items in the cultural pro¬ 
gramme of the Primula. Careless over-watering is 
sure to cause a great mortality among the plants. 
Too high feeding with artificial manures is also to be 
deprecated. 
Hyacinths of various sorts are now in their full 
glory, and the fragrance they exhale is almost over¬ 
powering. Instead of following the system so often 
favoured in many establishments of arranging the 
plants in a regular, straight line along the plant 
stages, and, as often as not, elevating them on 
pots to bring them up to the height required 
for the whole of the row, a better effect may 
be obtained by making little groups or batches of the 
same colour. Besides, nothing looks worse than to 
see plants propped up on pots, or, it may be, bricks if 
pots are scarce. 
Camellias will be a host in themselves, and, if the 
foliage has been nicely cleaned before the buds com¬ 
menced to open, will prove very attractive. The 
falling petals, however, make a good deal of litter, 
and, if the beds in which the plants are growing are 
to be kept tidy, a small-toothed iron rake must be 
kept regularly at work. Plenty of water is very 
necessary now, both for plants which are growing in 
pots as well as for those planted out in borders. 
Nothing beats a little soot water as a stimulant, for, 
in addition to being very effective, it has the 
additional recommendation of being devoid of 
unpleasant odours, and for obvious reasons strong¬ 
smelling manures are out of place in a conservatory. 
Staking and tying of many plants is an operation 
that will need careful attention, as the tissues are 
weak and need artificial support. The stakes used 
should be as neat and small as is consistent with 
strength and rigidity. Bamboos split up to various 
thicknesses make excellent material, although the 
green painted stakes look rather nicer. For Polyan¬ 
thuses and Freesias three or four stakes may be 
inserted close to the edge of the pot, their tops 
slightly inclining outwards. Small strips of raffia 
passed round these will be quite sufficient. For 
Hyacinths, on the other hand, a stake is needed for 
each flower spike, taking care that the top of the 
support reaches the level of the lower flowers. 
Climbers —These, of course, with one or two 
exceptions, are in a comparatively quiescent state. 
Such subjects as Kennedya prostrata Maryattae, and 
Hibbertia dentata are, however, very gay and 
attractive at this time of year. Both are easy to 
grow, soon make good plants, and flower most 
profusely at a time when the majority of climbers are 
taking a rest. 
Lapagerias. —If the pruning of these has not been 
seen to, it must be done without further delay, as 
growth is proceeding apace. Thin out the weak and 
spindly growths, and those that flowered last season, 
leaving just sufficient to cover the strings or wires, if 
these are used. Lapagerias are very liable to infection 
with mealy bug, which, once it gets a fair hold, is 
rather difficult to dislodge. Advantage may be taken 
therefore, of the present time, when the growths are 
thin, to do any sponging or cleaning that may be 
necessary. A wine-glassful of Fir-tree oil, in a 
gallon of tepid soft water, makes an excellent wash- 1 
ing solution. The leaves will need careful handling, 
as the petioles are brittle and snap very quickly if 
they are twisted. After cleaning, the growths must 
be tied neatly back in their places, taking care to 
keep them straight and unentangled along their 
entire length. Any of the supporting strings that 
have been broken, or have become too rotten to 
last through the season, should also be made good 
now.— A. S. G. 
ORCHID NOTES*& GLEANINGS. 
Orchids at Norwood Hall, Aberdeen.—An 
unusually large box of Orchids reached our office the 
other day from Mr. William Angus, The Gardens, 
Norwood Hall, Cults, Aberdeen. With the previous 
records we have given from the county, this con¬ 
signment serves to show that the cultivation of 
Orchids in Aberdeenshire is being very largely 
extended compared with what it used to be, relatively 
a few years ago. Some flowers of Cattleya Trianaei, 
cut from plants imported in 1894, also testify that 
the collection at Norwood Hall is in an actively 
growing condition. One of the blooms, especially, 
was of enormous size for this well-known Cattleya, 
each petal being 3I in. long and close upon 3 in. 
wide. A fine spike of Cymbidium lowianum, cut full 
length, bore twenty-one flowers with a rich crimson 
blotch upon the lip ; it formed a drooping spray of 
great beauty. A well-grown and vigorous spike of 
Phaius grandifolius bore twenty-two expanded 
flowers and a number of buds on the point of 
expansion. These flowers were closely arranged on 
the upper foot of the stem. 
We were also highly pleased with the several species 
of Dendrobiums sent, but particularly with D. 
wardianum Lowii, cut stems of which, bearing their 
flowers, were sent us. Nine inches of stem bore 
twelve or more flowers in one case, and all of 
imposing size, showing that Mr. Angus understands 
their culture. Those who are acquainted with this 
variety know that the flowers are characterised by 
great size and rich colours. A bouquet of flowers of 
D. findlayanum was extremely charming and varied 
in colour, for some of the blooms had a rich orange 
lip, while in other cases the lip was of a decided 
greenish-yellow hue. There were intermediate 
shades, and the largest flowers had the richest colour. 
A bouquet of D. nobile also showed a considerable 
amount of variation both in the size and colour of 
the individual blooms. Some of them were strongly 
scented, but the odour was peculiar and powerful 
though not disagreeable in any way. The lip was of 
great size in some cases. The dwarf-stemmed D. 
Cassiope possesses a peculiar charm for many culti¬ 
vators on account of the chaste appearance of the 
flowers. It is a well known hybrid. 
A large bunch of sprays of a variety of Coelogyne 
cristata also reminds us that this useful and popular 
Orchid is now in season. For cut flowers they are 
invaluable, though they do not possess the bright and 
attractive colours of the Dendrobiums. A fine bloom 
of Laelia superbiens also accompanied the above and 
better-known kinds. The lip of this Laelia is 
beautifully lined with purple internally and bears a 
prominent boss of nine lamellae or plates on the 
centre. Cypripedium bellatulum added its quota to 
the rest. Mr. Angus says that all of the above are 
flowering profusely at present at Norwood Hall; and 
we congratulate him upon his success with this 
important and popular family in the climate of 
Aberdeenshire. 
Orchids from Perth.—A correspondent from 
this neighbourhood sends us a box of Orchids for 
our opinion of them. His houses are very gay at 
present, and amongst others are some well-coloured 
varieties of Phalaenopsis schilleriana, flowering for 
the first time. Two varieties of Odontoglossum 
Rossii majus were very fine but we were most 
satisfied with the beautiful O. R. m. rubescens 
bearing three large rosy flowers on a scape. O. 
maculatum donnianum was also very richly coloured. 
O. nebulosum served to add variety to the others. 
A spray of Coelogyne cristata maxima indicated good 
cultivation judging from the size of the flowers. 
Dendrobium wardianum and D. nobile were brightly 
coloured and of good substance though moderate in 
size. The bright cinnabar flowers of Laelia 
cinnabarina harpophylla made a beautiful and 
striking contrast with the other subjects sent. 
Orchid houses can never be dull while brightened up 
with plenty of such subjects as the above mentioned. 
Our correspondent must be well favoured in the 
matter of light. 
