540 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
April 26, 1890. 
second, Mr. Keen, with J. J. Coleman ; third, Mr. 
Wheelwright, with Hotspur ; fourth, Mr. Turner, with 
Sunrise ; fifth, Mr. Turner, with Miss Moon. With 
twelve hardy Primroses, Mr. R. Dean, Ealing, was 
well first with a grand lot, including a few named 
varieties such as W. E. Gladstone, one of the 
finest shades of ruby - purple; Mrs. Gladstone, 
a fine white variety ; Samuel Barlow, a rich 
deep crimson ; and Brilliant, deep maroon-crimson, 
with the segments notched with yellow. Second, Mr. 
Douglas ; third, Mr. W. Harper, Millmead Nursery, 
Guildford. Mr. Dean had also much the best dozen 
Polyanthuses ; among them beiDg The Bride, white ; 
Sovereign, yellow ; Charmer, rosy lake ; and Buttercup, 
yellow. Second, Mr. Douglas; third, Mr. Harper. 
Six double Primroses : First, Messrs. Paul & Son. 
Species of Primulas were also nicely shown, Mr. 
Douglas being first for twelve plants, and Mr. Barlow 
for six. The best basket of Primroses also came from 
Mr. Dean. Mr. Barlow was first with gold-laced 
Polyanthuses, Mr. R. Dean, second, and Mr. Douglas, 
third. 
-»> 2 <-- 
ARDENING fTlSCELLANY. 
--- 
ForsytMa suspensa and Rhododendron 
gloxiniaeflorum. 
For trellises, verandahs, or the sides of a house, 
Forsythia suspensa is a charming subject. It is not of 
so bright a yellow as the Jasminum nudicaule, hut it 
surpasses that excellent shrub in its blooming properties. 
Besides, when allowed to hang down in festoons from 
its perch, it has a most graceful appearance. It is 
nearly always treated as a climber, but it also makes a 
very pretty standard. A few days ago (at the Dowager 
Countess of Morley’s, White way, in South Devon) I 
saw a nice specimen of it, grown as a standard and full 
of flower, standing by itself on the lawn. Hard by 
was a magnificent specimen of the Rhododendron 
gloxinifeflorum. It was about 10 ft. or 12 ft. high, and 
as much through, and was laden on every branch with 
trusses of its delicate. Gloxinia-like flowers fully open. 
As it stood it was a perfect picture, and the gardener, 
Mr. Nanseawen—a thorough, good, all-round gardener, 
by the way—was justly proud of it.— Devoniensis. 
Substitutes for Flower Pots. 
The practice of placing the roots of bedding plants 
in moss, and planting them out in pits or boxes to make 
their growth preparatory to bedding out, I had 
for many years to adopt, when in charge of an 
extensive place, simply because a sufficient number of 
pots were not allowed. To expedite the work, I 
changed the system then in practice (which had been 
adopted for many years before I saw the place), and 
spread over the bottom of the pits and boxes a quantity 
of moss, placing the plants on this with the roots entire, 
covering them with soil. They had their liberty of 
running freely into the moss, and when planting-out 
time arrived, the whole were matted together as we like 
to have Celery plants when they are removed to the 
trenches, and no check was sustained. The plants were 
better, and growth started at once. A system which 
seemed to answer well used to be practised at Belvoir 
by Mr. Ingram, who had large quantities of small home¬ 
made pots formed of clay and cow manure, in which the 
plants were placed. These soon filled with roots and 
were planted out (pots and roots entire) into the 
beds. The pots described appeared to help the growth 
and flowering of the plants, 'in course of time enriching 
the ground. A good system when putting Calceolarias 
into soil pieparatory for planting is to cut pieces of 
turf into squares, and put the roots on them, then cover 
with soil. They grow vigorously, and are turned out 
into the beds strong and healthy.— Stirling. 
Gardening- Papers for Young Men. 
I have read several letters of late on the subject of 
reading matter for young men, and am glad that it has 
wide sympathy. I think, however, that if action were 
taken by all head gardeners on behalf of those under 
them, much might be done to increase the knowledge 
of the men in horticultural theory and practice, as well 
as to disseminate a taste among them for something of 
a more elevating nature than some of the pastimes so 
much on the increase among all classes of operatives. 
Football is good exercise for those whose labours are 
mental only, but for men who have worked ten hours 
at their calling I cannot see that it is beneficial to 
either body or mind. Cards, and the various forms of 
amusement which they afford, give evanescent pleasure 
to some ; but the worst pastime of all is found in the 
reading of the debasing literature with which the 
country has been deluged for years past. When young 
gardeners take to the latter they may say farewell 
to the idea of attaining a high-class social standing, for 
I have never found an individual case where the read¬ 
ing of horticultural matter was relished when the 
questionable literature indicated was a special item in 
the young gardener’s weekly expenditure. I have 
pleasure in admitting, in every instance where I have 
put before employers the fact that the instruction of 
young men, and the providing of suitable reading 
material for them, was a duty incumbent upon all who 
employed men at a small remuneration, that such more 
or less was cheerfully granted. I had to pay for all 
I received when a youth, and it was an expensive 
item compared with these days of cheap literature ; but 
this prompts me to advance the cause of others. We 
have at present six papers supplied gratis every week. 
— Stirling. 
Primulas from Layers. 
Lovers of these exquisite flowers who are frequently 
disappointed in obtaining from seeds the strains they 
expect to get, will be glad to know that they may very 
easily obtain young stock by layering the side shoots 
of their old plants. I have practised this with great 
success, and with care the cuttings seldom fail to grow 
and produce'good flowering plants which will bloom 
the same season. When the plants have finished 
flowering I select the healthiest side shoots, and with 
a sharp knife make a slight cut from the under side of 
the shoot near to the parent plant, partially severing 
it therefrom, and after placing under the cutting a 
little fine soil, with a little sharp silver sand on the 
surface, fix the cutting into this soil with a layering peg 
obtained from a Fern stem. Plants thus treated should 
be placed in a warm shady position in a cool house, 
giving plenty of air in fine weather, and the young 
shoots will take root in about a fortnight.— Primula. 
Spiraea aruncus astilboides. 
This handsome hardy perennial forces as readily as the 
common Astilbe japonica, better known in gardens 
as Spiraea japonica. Forcing, possibly, induces a 
greater length of the stems and leaves than is the case 
out of doors, but the plumy elegance of the branching 
panicles of white flowers more than compensates for 
the space occupied. The plants we noted recently in 
a greenhouse in the nursery of Messrs. B. S. Williams 
& Son, Upper Holloway, were about 2 ft. in height, 
and they proved on examination to be the male form of 
the variety. Whether the female form would be as 
ornamental is an open question, for we know that the 
female form of S. Aruncus itself is anything but 
handsome (as far as the flowers are concerned), com¬ 
pared with the plant under notice. The essential 
differences between the variety and the type consist in 
the dwarfness of the former, and the plumy appearance 
produced by the filaments of the densely arranged 
flowers. 
Rhododendron, Queen of Dwarfs. 
This is an exquisite, early-flowering, dwarf, and free 
hybrid Rhododendron, raised and now in course of dis¬ 
tribution by Messrs. Isaac Davies & Sons, nurserymen, 
Ormskirk, a firm who have made a specialty of the 
early-flowering Rhododendrons, and distributed many 
varieties of great decorative value. Queen of Dwarfs 
is a hardy type, and it can be taken from the open 
ground in October, and got into bloom at Christmas. 
It is a dwarf-habited plant, with small green leaves, 
bearing masses of large, well-expanded, snow-white 
flowers. The Messrs. Davies sent me a plant at the 
end of March, and though small enough to come by 
parcel post, yet bore four fine trusses of bloom. It is 
to my mind a most valuable type.— R. D. 
Primula spectabilis. 
This pretty Alpine species I regard as one of the gems 
of my collection of hardy Primulas. It is early to 
bloom, a good grower, free, and by no means impatient 
of a little rough treatment ; the flowers are produced 
in trusses, and they are of a very pleasing shade of 
magenta-rose. Something like it, but larger and deeper 
in colour, is a form I obtained some years ago under 
the name of P. latifolia, but quite distinct from the 
latter as exhibited by Messrs. Paul & Son at a late 
meeting of the Royal Horticultural Society. It seems 
to be an intermediate type, but how it originated I do 
not know ; it, however, makes a charming pot plant. 
I have to grow these hardy Primulas in pots, not with¬ 
out some rests during the summer while I am from 
home for several days. I find it helpful to place a few 
stones about the roots and on the surface of the soil of 
all cultivated in pots.— It. D. 
Randia maculata. 
The subject here noted is best known under the name 
of Gardenia Stanleyana ; but it is by no means common 
in gardens under any name. It is sometimes considered 
difficult to flower, but under good exposure to light, 
and the proper ripening of the wood it does not seem to 
matter whether it is grown in a pot or planted out. 
The flowers are trumpet shaped, of great size, and 
white spotted with deep rather dull purple in the 
throat. "When well flowered it is rather a striking 
plant, but for some unaccountable reason does not seem 
to enjoy any great popularity, There is a plant of it at 
Kew, about 2 ft. high, bearing some half a score of 
flowers. In its native habitats of Sierra Leone it attains 
the dimensions of a small tree. Some ninety species 
are known, but few are yet in cultivation. They are 
closely allied to Gardenia, and require similar treat¬ 
ment. 
-->X<-- 
ORCHID NOTES AND GLEANINGS. 
*♦* 
Orchid Growers’ Calendar. 
Maxy of the Dendrobiums appear much more charming 
when grown in baskets than in pots, especially such as 
D. Devonianum, D. lituiflorum, D. Pierardii, D. 
primulinum, &c., and considering that they usually 
thrive better when so treated, it is good policy to pro¬ 
vide them with baskets ; while D. Falconeri will best 
appreciate a piece of tree Fern stem to grow on. Most 
of the above Dmdrobes having flowered, will now be 
rapidly pushing young growth, and should be re¬ 
basketed without delay if they require it, as well as any 
others which, by the pendulous habit of their growths, 
appear to be better adapted for basket than for pot 
culture. If the space at command allows it, they will 
be best placed together during the growing season, so 
that a thinner shade may be used for them than is 
required for the ordinary occupants of the East Indian 
house, and where they can also be freely syringed 
during the time they are making rapid growth. 
Dendrobium Devonianum, as Is well known by ex¬ 
perienced growers, is very liable to be crippled by red- 
spider, and the syringe is a good weapon to use against 
it. "Where roof space is limited, there need be no 
difficulty about growing the plants in baskets, for they 
can be stood on the stages, or on elevated stands or 
inverted pots, without having any wires for suspending, 
and then having finished the season’s growth, the 
wires may be adj usted so that the plants may hang and 
get well ripened in the house used for the purpose, as 
the effect produced by a good lot of suspended Den- 
drobes of moderate size is worth the little extra trouble. 
Cattleya Warnerii, now showing sheaths, should be 
liberally watered until the pseudo-bulbs are quite 
finished up, and the same remark applies to C. gigas 
Sanderiana, which requires good soakings now the 
sheaths are showing. Cattleya labiata, autumn- 
flowering, just on the move, should now be re-potted 
if requisite.— W. P. 
Odontoglossum triumphans aureum. 
The foliage and pseudo-bulbs of this fine variety are 
similar to those of the type. The flowers are, however, 
remarkably distinct from any of the named or unnamed 
varieties in cultivation. The sepals are of a uniform 
golden yellow or nearly so, the usual brown colouring 
having entirely disappeared. The petals are lanceolate- 
elliptic, and of the same golden hue, or a shade paler, 
with a few transverse whitish yellow lines or markings 
in the place of those that are of a bright yellow in the 
forms where brown is the prevailing hue. The base of 
the oblong-cordate pointed lip is white, with a yellow 
crest and a few yellow spots, while the upper half is 
yellow with a white margin. A plant was exhibited by 
A. H. Smee, Esq. (gardener, Mr. G. W. Cummins), 
The Grange, "Wallington, at the last meeting of the 
Royal Horticultural Society, when he received a First 
Class Certificate for it. 
Cattleya Lawrenceana Vinckii. 
As far as colour is concerned, this is a most remarkable 
Cattleya. The sepals are white, with a faint tinge of 
violet. The oblong petals are more deeply stained with 
the same hue. The lower or tubular portion of the lip 
is of a pale purplish hue, but the lamina and the upper 
edges of the lateral lobes are of a deep violet-blue, of a 
tint and intensity perhaps never before seen in a 
Cattleya. The pseudo-bulbs and foliage are much of the 
usual colour. A plant of it was shown by Baron 
Schroder (gardener, Mr. H. Ballantine), The Dell, 
Egham, at the last meeting of the Royal Horticultural 
Society, and received a First Class Certificate. 
