390 
The gardening world 
February 16,1895. 
best English coal or anthracite. We never took 
kindly to this district coal for heating purposes. It 
is extremely dirty, is not durable, which, in frosty 
weather, necessitates almost constant stoking. Not¬ 
withstanding the faultless character of the best 
Newcastle coal for heating, we have a strong pre¬ 
dilection for Welsh anthracite. The heating merits 
of this fuel for gardens are simply incomparable. 
During the recent hard frost here, it would be 
trying work for us to keep up the necessary heat of 
the volume of water encased in a thousand feet of 
four in. piping, by one furnace, were it not for anth¬ 
racite. Our district coal would only accomplish the 
same feat by stoking up to midnight and getting up 
at four or five in the morning. The use of anthracite 
completely overcomes this difficulty and reduces 
work in such weather to that of ordinary firing. We 
are astonished so many gardeners and nurserymen 
do not avail themselves of this invincible fuel. But 
antedeluvian notions are not easily removed, nor 
chronic habits readily put aside, consequently the 
aspect of our astonishment must be to some extent 
modified. In the interest of gardening we would 
recommend the fuel to the notice of all gardeners.— 
Gamma , Edinlurgli. 
- » « - 
ORCHID NOTES AND GLEANINGS. 
By John Fraser, F.L.S., Kew. 
Cattleya labiata Trianaei.—The first arrival of 
this popular Cattleya in British gardens consisted of 
one plant, which was received by Mr. Rucker, West 
Hill, Wandsworth, from a correspondent in New 
Grenada. This flowered the following year and was 
submitted to Dr. Lindley, who considered it a new 
species and named it C. quadricolor in allusion to 
the four colours in it, but no description of it was 
published in England till 1864. Previous to this, 
Professor Reichenbach had named it C. Trianaei 
in compliment to Dr. Triaria, of Bogota. This was 
in i860, when a description was published in 
Schlechtendal's Botanische Zeitung. A description of 
a pale variety was published in the Gardener's 
Chronicle for 1864 under the name of C. quadricolor, 
and in the same article, after mentioning C. 
Warscewiczii delicata, C. Trianaei was said to be 
another variety of the same species. Now, by right 
of priority, Reichenbach’s name must be considered 
the correct one, and as all good botanists make it a 
form of C. labiata, the name should read C. 
I. Trianaei. The most common method of spelling 
the varietal name is Trianae, and we have seen 
Trianoe used, but seeing that Trianaei was used as 
early as 1864, we cannot understand why that should 
not have been adopted by writers generally. Trianae 
would lead one to infer that the Cattleya was named 
after a lady, whereas it was named in compliment to 
Dr. Triana. We prefer to dispense with the dipthong 
and write the name Cattleya labiata Trianaei. 
Catasetum splendens atropurpureum.—in 
a previous issue we expressed an opinion in connec¬ 
tion with some forms of C. macrocarpum, that some 
of the recent introductions showed evidence of natural 
hybridisation between C. Bungerothii and C. macro¬ 
carpum, which is well known to be very variable in 
a state of nature. This opinion receives corrobora¬ 
tion from M. Cogniaux in the Lindenia for January 
and February. The forms that are quite intermediate 
he considers should be distinguished by a special 
name as in similar cases. C. splendens is one of 
these, and he describes the scape as bearing eight to 
ten flowers somewhat smaller than those of C. 
Bungerothii. The oblong-spathulate sepals are 
membranous whitish green, and thinly washed with 
purple, while the petals are more ovate, finely spotted 
with purple except at the apex which is washed with 
purple, and they approximate the dorsal sepal. The 
lip is fleshy, rigid, membranous at the margin, 
suborbicular and saccate to the middle ; this latter 
character is one of the strongest it possesses, 
and argues strongly for the botanical distinctness of 
the plant. The colour of the lip is white, with some 
faint purple spots at the base of the side lobes, and 
pale green inside the sac or large spur. The variety 
C. s. atropurpureum is very remarkable in colour, 
but otherwise agrees with the type. The narrowly 
obovate petals and the sepals are of a uniform, rich, 
dark purple, and the lip is a little smaller and purple 
heavily washed with red. The sac is wider and 
yellowish spotted with purple. The column is 
purple at the base and yellowish upward. There is 
a coloured plate of it in the Lindenia, PI. 456. 
Masdevallla Tovarensis.—In calling to see Mr. 
Salter, the able gardener at Woodhatch Lodge, 
Reigate, some ten days ago for the purpose, as we 
gardeners say, of having a look round, I was par¬ 
ticularly struck with a fine batch of Masdevallia 
tovarensis I there saw in flower. The plants, about 
twenty in number, are grown in 7-in. pots and 
possess on an average twenty-five spikes on a plant 
and from four to five flowers on a spike. I was 
practically too late to see them at their best, but 
even at the time of my visit they made a remarkable 
display and were striking examples of good culture. 
— H. Bailey. 
-+-- 
The Stove. 
The past week or two has been an excessively 
trying period for those who are responsible for the 
management of the plant houses, and this more 
particularly in respect to the stove. With the 
thermometer down to zero during the night, and its 
determined refusal to rise above freezing point 
during the day, it is manifest that those whose 
duty it is to attend to the fires will find their hands 
pretty full. But although the air continues cold and 
and keen all through the day, the sun when it 
condescends to make its appearance shines with a 
good deal of power, and therefore the temperatures 
of the houses must be watched very carefully to see 
that they do not rise too high. With so many 
parching and drying influences at work it is obvious 
that a corresponding amount of caution must be 
exercised to prevent the atmosphere becoming too 
dry and arid. The shelves and stages upon which 
the plants are standing should be damped morning 
and evening with a rose can, also the walls and paths, 
as it will not be possible to use the syringe while the 
severe weather holds. If the house can be kept up 
to 62° Fahr. by night without too vigorous applica¬ 
tion of fire-heat so much the better, and it may rise 
to 75 0 on sunny days with advantage. 
The work of potting should now be actively 
carried on following out the instructions given in 
previous calendars. Where space is obtainable in 
the forcing pit any subjects, the roots of which are 
in a bad condition or that have been subjected 
to a severe handling, may with advantage be removed 
thither and plunged in a nice bottom heat in order to 
stimulate healthy and vigorous root action. The 
watering of all newly potted subjects must be con¬ 
ducted with great care, and on no account must a too 
free use of the watering can be tolerated or the soil 
will soon become sodden and sour, a condition of 
things that is certainly not calculated to invite the 
formation of new and healthy roots. It is very 
important also that a rose should be placed upon the 
can whilst watering, for if water be applied carelessly 
through the spout without this precaution being 
taken, the surface soil soon becomes washed over the 
sides of the pots and many of the roots laid bare. 
Caladiums. —Tubers of these which are passing 
the winter beneath the stages in the stove may be 
looked over from time to time and a little water 
given them, for if they are allowed to get too dry, as 
is often the case, the tubers shrivel, and weakened 
growth is the result. A few tubers may now be 
shaken out of the old soil and potted up for early 
work, leaving, however, the bulk of the plants for a 
week or two later. This early batch will be found 
to come away best when plunged in a gentle bottom 
heat in a forcing pit, the surface of the soil being 
kept nicely moist by means of the syringe. 
Gloxinias. —Preparations must also be made for 
starting a batch of these, the gorgeous flowers of 
which are everywhere such great favourites. The 
plants may be removed from their resting quarters 
and potted up into light rich soil, taking care not to 
bury the tubers too deeply. After potting apply 
water in a sparing degree until growth is pretty 
well advanced, when abundance of water will be 
necessary. 
Greenhouse and Cool Conservatory. 
Here the same difficulty of keeping up the requisite 
temperature without undue recourse to fire heat will 
be felt, and it is therefore advisable to employ it as 
little as possible. If any air is required during the 
middle of bright days it must be very cautiously 
administered so as not to cause cold draughts, still 
on no account must a close and confined atmosphere 
be permitted to exist. 
Cinerarias. —Plants which are in flower at the 
present time will need occasional supplies of weak 
liquid manure. If it is desired to save seed from 
any particularly fine varieties, such plants should be 
marked in the way recommended for Primulas and 
Cyclamens. The plants should moreover be given 
sufficient room to show themselves off to advantage, 
and must on no account be crowded together. 
Clivias (Imantophyllums).—These are certainly 
among the finest of our greenhouse flowering plants, 
and form most useful and effective subjects for the 
decoration of greenhouse or conservatory during the 
late winter and spring months. Although they 
usually grow more freely where an intermediate tem¬ 
perature is accorded them during the growing 
season, still they do very well in an ordinary green¬ 
house, their chief requirements being a liberal supply 
of water when growing and comparative freedom 
from disturbance.at the root. Plants which are now 
throwing up their flower scapes will greatly benefit 
by a few applications of weak liquid farmyard 
manure. 
Lapagerias.— These beautiful and popular green¬ 
house climbers will now be breaking into growth. 
Pruning should therefore be seen to without delay, 
as the points of the young growths are exceedingly 
tender. Remove the shoots that have already 
flowered during the past season together with the 
weaker and more spindly growths. Should any 
cleansing from insect pests be necessary this should 
then be seen to and the remaining growths tied neatly 
up in their places. 
Pits and Frames. 
On occasions like the present, when the mercury is 
below freezing point the whole of the day, it often 
happens that the covering cannot be removed from 
the frames for several days or even weeks at a time, 
the resulting loss of light being exceedingly injurious 
to their inmates. Every available opportunity for 
letting a little light into these benighted subjects 
must therefore be seized. As it will be much better 
for the plants that have to stand the winter in cold 
frames for them to be kept well on the dry side, 
little or no water should be given them as long as 
such Arctic conditions obtain. With the heated pits 
the same difficulty in the removal of the covering 
material does not of course exist, although not a 
little trouble will be met with in the shifting of forced 
plants to the greenhouse or conservatory. 
The propagation of all kinds of bedding plants 
must be carried on as rapidly as the necessary 
cuttings can be obtained, so as to allow time for 
them to become nice-sized little plants by bedding 
out time (June, usually). Keep all pots of cuttings 
as near to the glass as possible so as to favour a 
sturdy short-jointed growth. 
Hollyhocks.— Plants of these which were lifted 
from the open ground at the commencement of 
winter and laid in boxes with a light covering of 
soil may now be placed in a gentle heat to start them 
into growth. A good method of propagation is to 
take the cuttings when two or three inches in length 
and to graft them on to a small portion of the root, 
afterwards potting them up singly in small pots, 
making the soil around them ^moderately firm and 
plunging them in a propagating frame having a 
temperature of from 6o° to 658 Fahr. In such a 
situation they root quickly and surely, and a good 
stock of nice young plants to flower during the 
coming season may be easily obtained. 
Tuberous Begonias. —In most establishments 
these are held in great esteem as pot plants, and well 
do they deserve the attentiou they receive. Where 
it is desired to have a number of plants in bloom 
early in the season a number of tubers may be 
started now. A mixture of good fibrous loam and 
leaf soil with the addition of some well rotted and 
dried manure and a little sand may be recommended, 
whilst it is very important that in potting the soil 
should not be made too firm or the tubers will not 
start away so readily as they should do. Seed may 
also be sown as soon as convenient in well drained 
pans filled with light fine soil. Cover the pans with 
a piece of glass and place them in a temperature of 
about 65° Fahr. Double varieties or any good 
single sorts of which it is desired to increase the 
stock may be propagated by cuttings, which should 
be taken as soon as the young shoots are 2 in. or 
