Feb. 14th, 1885. 
THE GARDENING WORLD, 
377 
SEED TIME, 
The season for seed-sowing having again returned, 
it is well to consider not only which is the exact time 
to sow the different kinds, but also what is the best 
manner to sow them. How numerous and frequent 
are the complaints received by the seedsmen from 
their customers at this season, they only can tell. 
I did once hear the confession inadvertently made, 
that a certain “ big house” employed a special clerk, 
whose unthankful office was to reply to those grumb¬ 
ling, ungracious missives; and this important, and no 
doubt very useful personage, was commonly known 
and recognized amongst his compeers in that estab¬ 
lishment as “ the complaint.” I do not wish to make 
an addition to this list of grumblers, which is already 
swollen so large ; indeed I may say I am one of those 
fortunate individuals who have not had much cause 
for complaint in this respect, nor would I presume 
to attempt on the other hand to espouse their cause, 
simply because I am not equal to the task, and also 
because I am not quite sure if there is not a little of 
early and even tender vegetables sown in the open 
ground in February, simply because that month is 
said to be the proper one, although the frost and snow 
has scarcely melted from it, and although the tempera¬ 
ture of the soil under the circumstances at the time 
cannot exceed 34 degs. Perhaps a hailstorm follows 
and the seeds are frozen through, it may be at the 
time they are germinating. Under such conditions 
it is hardly reasonable to expect success, and yet 
such cases are of common occurrence even till the 
end of March, at which time many early seeds 
should have been sown, otherwise they will be late 
in coming into use. In many instances the seeds 
are sown in a comparatively sunless border, or in a 
light flour-like soil, such as will scarcely retain 
sufficient moisture to enable them to vegetate 
during the dry winds which sometimes prevail, and 
which cannot possibly be made sufficiently firm 
round the seeds to ensure that condition so essential 
to perfect germination. If they must be sown in the 
open ground at this season it should be on the 
sunniest border, but wherever there is a cold pit 
THE FAVOURITE ORCHID. 
Odontoglossum crispum (Alexandras).— Reference 
to our illustration of the lovely mauve-spotted and 
tinged 0. crispum Veitchianum at p. 37, September 
20th, and to that of a pure white variety from Mr. 
Vanner at p. 117, October 25th, will serve to give 
a good idea of the extraordinary range for variation 
which the species has between the two extreme forms, 
and a glance at the accompanying notes at those 
dates will furnish some interesting details connected 
with it. We now give an illustration of a plant of 
O. crispum bearing between fifty and sixty blooms, 
from Dr. Paterson’s famed collection at Bridge of 
Allan in order to show its habit of growth. 
Odontoglossum crispum, from its great beauty and 
easy culture, may be called the favourite Orchid, 
beloved by all, but especially by the amateur and 
beginner, who, having no pretensions to being either 
learned in Orchids or their culture, finds no difficulty 
in growing the innumerable varieties of this plant 
to perfection. So great has been the demand for it 
ODONTOGLOSSUM CRISPUM, GROWN BY DR. PATERSON, BRIDGE OF ALLAN. 
truth sometimes in those complaints that are made. 
Old seeds may be furbished, mixed with, and sent 
out as new, but in some seasons when thus treated 
they tend rather to improve than impair the quality 
of the sample, so that perhaps the least said on this 
head the better. They should not, however, be too 
old to germinate. Then, again, it is said that a packet 
of seed often resembles the wizard’s bottle, in freely 
producing anything and everything you may choose 
to ask for in the way of varieties. This, I am 
inclined to think, pertains not so much to these as 
to former days. We have, let us hope, left such 
practices in the past. If now attempted, I cannot 
believe such jugglery is committed to any extent, 
and most assuredly not by those respectable firms 
whose reputation is far more valuable to them than 
the results of such trickery would be. The cry that 
seeds will not grow does, however, still prevail, but 
the fault is, perhaps, more often to be attributed to 
the gardener, the weather, or the legion of birds and 
insect enemies with which he has constantly to battle. 
These alone make early seed-sowing very precarious, 
nor does the gardener always adopt those means which 
are most conducive to perfect germination. 
It is no uncommon occurrence to see the seeds of 
or frame at liberty, the earliest kinds, such as 
Lettuces, Cauliflowers, Brussels Sprouts, Carrots, 
Radishes, and even Broccoli and Cabbages should 
not be risked in the open ground. 
As great quantities of plants are not generally 
required at this early season, the most economical 
and useful method is to prepare a number of seed 
pans, fill them with moderately rich soil, and after 
sowing the seeds place them in the pit or frame till 
the plants are in rough leaf, when they should be 
pricked into the soil in the frame to receive all 
the air possible, or on a warm south border. Such 
seeds as Cauliflowers, Celery, or such as require to 
be got forward should be placed in a moderate heat. 
By this means much time and anxiety will be saved, 
and the tender sprouting seeds will be screened from 
the bad weather, birds, slugs, and other destructive 
insects, and if they do not freely germinate under 
such conditions, there must be something wrong at 
the seed store from which they were obtained, and 
the sooner a change is made the better. There is, 
of course, the cost of the pans to be considered, 
but this is more than counterbalanced by the lesser 
quantity of seeds required, and the other advantages 
far outweigh this trifling expense.— Scribo. 
that it has become to the growers of plants under 
glass what Lilium auratum has to general plant 
cultivators, and many thousands of it are imported 
every year, always to find a ready sale. 
The hybrids, too, which flower out of the importa¬ 
tions, are very lovely and interesting, and give 
additional interest to the grower. Sydney Courtauld 
Esq., of Booking Place, Braintree, Avho has been par¬ 
ticularly fortunate with these hybrids, at present has 
some fine examples of them in bloom, one specimen 
of 0. Andersonianum lobatum having a grand spike 
of over thirty blooms on it. 
O. crispum coming from an elevation of 7,000 ft. to 
8,000 ft. in Bogota, requires a cool, moist, and rather 
shady house of a temperature ranging between 45 
degs. and 65 degs., and there with a plentiful supply 
of fresh air and an abundance of rain water, no 
difficulty will be found in growing it. But often 
fresh importations are lost by wrong treatment even 
by those who grow established plants well. By far 
the best mode of treating newly-arrived specimens 
is to crock them into pots, and water the crocks 
from time to time until the plants begin to grow, 
and then to pot them in fibry peat and living 
sphagnum in the ordinary way. 
