774 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
August 6, 1898. 
PiDks, Her Majesty, Mrs. Sinkins, and Ernest Lad- 
hams are very free. Herbaceous plants are at their 
best. 
The vegetable department is somewhat extensive, 
large breadths of Cabbages, Potatos, Strawberries, 
etc., are doing well, the soil being a good loam on a 
gravelly bottom. Veitch's Main Crop Pea is pro¬ 
ducing pods freely ; it is an excellent cropper, and 
the quality is good. 
The principal range of glass is known as the 
“ Crystal Palace,” it having a large dome-like centre 
about 30 ft. high. This canopy of glass practically 
constitutes the conservatories, where animals as well 
as plants do congregate. Begonias, Pelargoniums, 
Heliotropes, Roses, and such like plants adorn the 
house ; the most interesting subject, perhaps, is a large 
Blue Gum tree, which has reached the top of the dome. 
This tree is a study in itself, and was raised from 
seed by Mr. Pentney four years ago. Eucalyptus 
coccinea also finds a place. 
A step from here and we are in the midst of 
Cannas, which have been planted out, bordered by 
Hybrid Streptocarpus, and backed by the new 
climbing French Bean. These Beans have already 
attained a height of about 8 ft., the pods, however, 
are conspicuously absent, Mr. Pentney having 
treated them too kindly. A row in another house, 
minus rich soil, is fruiting freely. 
Transferring ourselves to the corresponding arm 
of the dome range we come across Peaches, Nec¬ 
tarines, and other subjects trained to wire supports ; 
fruit trees in pots, and some miscellaneous flowering 
plants. Other houses exhibited Tomatos, Mr. 
Pentney’s own selection ; Melons, Blenheim Orange ; 
Gloxinias, Carnations, etc., and some remarkably 
fine Streptocarpuses. These occupied 14-in. pans, 
and were large and healthy-looking, many of the 
flowers measuring 3 in. from lobe to lobe. They 
were in the germ condition fifteen months ago, the 
seed being obtained from a friend as "very choice." 
Many more things were noted than we can set down 
here ; suffice it to say that seed-raising and subse¬ 
quent selection, and hybridisation is not only an 
effective and economical means of obtaining quantity 
and quality, but one of the most interesting and in¬ 
tellectual processes in the world of plants.—C. B. G. 
Acton, IV. 
VEGETABLES IN THE NORTH. 
After a mild winter, with little sunshine during 
spring and early summer, July has come in fairly 
seasonable, but the nights are generally cold, the 
thermometer being often down to from 38° to 45 0 in 
the early morning, and some tender plants have 
suffered thereby, French Beans especially, but 
vegetable crops on the whole are good—Peas never 
were better. Veitch’s Chelsea Gem takes the lead 
among a number of dwarfs for earliness, and as a 
heavy cropper. The flavour is good, and the pods 
are much larger than those of any other dwarf 
variety. Gralus has sustained its high character 
this year, being one of the earliest, with large, well- 
filled pods of fine flavour, and its bearing proclivity 
is excellent. We find this is the experience of 
others in the Stirling district (where vegetable cul¬ 
ture has more attention than in most localities). 
The useful dwarf American Wonder, sown between 
the tall early sorts, gives a heavy return on the 
space. Criterion, Exouian and Laxton’s Fillbasket 
are coming in close to those named, and they are 
each of much excellence. Late Peas are very 
promising, but if the drought continues, heavy 
mulchings of manure or grass mowings will be given 
to save watering. Many fail in Pea growing by 
watering the surface only instead of administering 
liberal soakings which will go beyond the roots. 
Potatos are productive, but smaller in size than 
they often are. Sharpe’s Victor is still the earliest, 
but was this season cut down with the severe frosts 
we experienced during the middle of June. Veitch's 
Ashleaf is one of the best of its class, especially for 
earliness and fine quality. Belvoir Castle comes 
much the same as Veitch’s Ashleaf, and appears to 
be a good selection from the old Ashleaf. Beauty of 
Hebron is doing well, and is of fine quality. Sutton's 
Ringleader is a first-rate early Kidney Potato, and 
promises to give much satisfaction in this district. 
Sutton’s Ai is a capital round Potato, and with us 
is one of the earliest we have tried. Mid-season and 
late Potatos are looking fairly well, but generally 
smaller in the tops than usual. This applies to a 
large portion of Perthshire as well as nearer to our¬ 
selves. 
This being one of the best seasons we have had for 
Cabbages, it may be interesting to some, who have a 
strong prejudice to planting on unbroken ground, to 
mention the old market-growing practice to plant 
Brassicas of all kinds to stand the winter on extra firm 
land. By this practice, extending over many years, we 
have had the finest Cabbages from plantations on firm 
ground from whence Onions have been removed and 
not dug, but never saw the fact so exemplified as it 
is this season. The prominent hearts with few out¬ 
side leaves on the Cabbages are all we can desire, 
while on adjoining ground where deep digging was 
done for several sorts of Cabbage, the leaves are 
large in proportion to the hearts, and the crop can 
in no way compare with Cabbages which were in¬ 
serted by means of an iron-pointed dibber into the 
hard soil. We are planting a border of Rosette Col- 
worts on undug ground. Simply clearing the surface 
of weeds after winter Onions were removed. They 
will be of much more value during the autumn and 
winter than if they were grown on newly-dug land. 
The ground for the previous crop was turned up 
deeply with plently of manure added to the soil.— 
M. Temple, Carron, N.B. 
ORCHID NOTES & GLEANINGS. 
By the Editor. 
Orchids at Edenside.—Mr. James Douglas has 
not yet been able to shake off his old love for Orchids, 
but on the contrary has devoted a house to them at 
his new place, Edenside, Great Bookham, Surrey, 
where they will form a contrast to the Carnations. 
The house is an intermediate one, and contains a con¬ 
siderable number of Cattleyas and Laelias, several 
of which are now flowering. A very fine variety of 
Cattleya gigas was characterised by a rich crimsoD- 
purple lip, and conspicuous, circular eye-like spots. 
Several varieties of C. gaskelliana were also 
flowering, including a distinct variety, with a long, 
narrow tube to the lip, and a delicately-coloured, but 
handsome, lamina. The original plant, or a piece of 
it, of Cattleya Warneri figured in the Orchid Album 
is here, having been bought at Rucker’s sale. 
Dendrobium Victoriae Reginae has hitherto 
proved very refractory to cultivate, but Mr. Douglas' 
plants have made young stems 6 in. to 12 in. long, 
and stout for the species. D. wardianum has also 
made excellent and firm growth, hung up close to 
and often touching the glass, the wood being firm 
and well ripened. The new D. spectabile has made 
young growths entirely unlike the old, whatever it 
may mean by that. A fine batch of Calanthes is 
making excellent, or in some cases, extraordinary, 
growth, thus indicating that Mr. Douglas thoroughly 
understands their culture. Amongst them are C. 
Phoebe, C. burfordiense, and Cookson’s hybrids. A 
very fine form of Coelogyne speciosa is that named 
C. s. superba, the brown of the lip being much 
darker and better defined than usual. This plant 
seems to flower in season and out of season. The 
finest of all the Pitcher Plants for general cultivation 
is Nepenthes Mastersii, being dwarf, easily grown, 
and here carrying pitchers of the largest size and 
richest colour for the type. While inspecting the 
Cattleyas we noted some recently-imported pieces 
that had been put in Sander’s Orchid pan, and others 
that bad been put in pots at the same time. Those 
in the pans had made a mass of healthy and 
vigorous roots, permeating the compost everywhere, 
and pushing out through the slits of the pans, and 
attaching themselves to the outside in abundance. 
Seedling hybrid Orchids are another hobby of Mr. 
Douglas. Already he has some in various stages of 
growth and promising something distinct; while 
others are on the point of germinating, and seeds are 
still ripening in the pots of other plants. 
Coryanthes maculata.—For some ten days 
past or more this strange member of the Orchid 
family has been one of the chief wonders to the 
public, of the houses at Kew. It is located in the 
Nepenthes house, where it has more fascination to 
visitors than the Pitcher Plants themselves, so much 
so in fact that the plant has had to be protected 
against the handling of the curious. A large plant 
is grown in a basket, and carries six flower spikes, 
the youngest only a couple of inches long, and the 
flowering ones for the time being about as many 
feet, and drooping perpendicularly. 
The structure of the flower is marvellous, and the 
variety at Kew a very fine one. The sepals are very 
large, like those of a Stanhopea, reflexed, and after a 
time more or less folded or crumpled over the apex 
of the flower ; the outer face is straw-yellow, but the 
inner one is bright, almost golden yellow, richly 
blotched with crimson. The petals are similar in 
colour but very much smaller. The lip has a lODg, 
curved claw, continuous with the base of the column ; 
and its lateral lobes are connate about the middle of 
the claw, as it were, forming a structure like a fire¬ 
man’s helmet, below which the claw is continued to 
another, much larger, and inverted helmet, or bucket 
to which the claw seems the handle. The upper 
small helmet is yellow ; but the inverted one is pale 
yellow, richly blotched with crimson internally, and 
finely mottled with the same colour externally. The 
apex of the large helmet is trifid and lies around the 
face of the column. Right and left of the base of 
the column are two short horns or nectaries project¬ 
ing over the bucket and distilling a copious liquid 
into it, which is intended as a special bath for insect 
visitors, though entirely unbargained for on the part 
of the latter. The uninitiated would have great diffi¬ 
culty in recognising the various parts of the flower, 
the sepals, petals, lip and column being so dis¬ 
guised or masked by the remarkable forms they 
have assumed. Being a native of tropical America, 
the warm, moist atmosphere of the Nepenthes 
house must meet its requirements pretty closely, 
■ ■!» 
PLANTS RECENTLY CERTIFICATED. 
The Royal Horticultural Society made the under¬ 
mentioned awards on the 26th ult. 
Orchid Committee. 
Laeliocattleya Ingrami gigantea. Nov. hyb. 
bigen. —This hybrid variety was derived from Laelia 
pumila crossed with the pollen of Cattleya dowiana, 
and the latter must be responsible for the huge size 
of the flower. The stems vary from 3 in. to 6 in. in 
height and recall what occurs in the seed parent. 
The sepals are remarkably broad for any Cattleya or 
Laelia, and of a warm rose. The large ovate petals 
are similar in hue. The lamina of the huge lip is 
orbicular, crisped and crimson-purple, the dark 
colour contracting to a purple band running to the 
base of the tube. The interior of the latter is 
otherwise soft purple, and so is the outer face. A 
First-class Certificate was deservedly awarded to 
this variety, which has much larger flowers than Lc. 
Ingrami. Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, Ltd. Chelsea. 
Masdevallia Imogen. Nov. hyb. —The seed parent 
in this case was M. Schlimii and the pollen bearer 
M.Veitchi. The spathulate leaves are light green, 
and the flowers about the size of those of the seed 
parent. The scapes are about 9 in. high and carry 
three flowers. The latter are dark orange, densely 
mottled with crimson and covered with a violet plush, 
as in M. Veitchi. The tails are about 1 in. to i\ in. 
long. Award of Merit. Messrs J. Veitch & Sons. 
Laeliocattleya schilleriana Cambridge 
Lodge var. Nov. var. —The supposed parentage of 
this imported plant is Laelia purpurataand Cattleya 
intermedia, crossed back again with L. purpurata. 
The sepals are of the palest lilac, and the petals 
oblong-elliptic, lined and veined with soft purple on 
a silvery-blush ground. The curved tube of the lip is 
deep purple, while the rounded and crisped lamina 
is intense crimson-purple, as are the side lobes. The 
lamina is not clawed. A band of purple runs down 
the white interior of the tube. Altogether it is an 
uncommon looking form. Award of Merit. R. I. 
Measures, Esq. (gardener, Mr. H. J. Chapman), 
Cambridge Lodge, Camberwell. 
Floral Committee. 
Artjndinaria nitida. —The dense, spray-like droop¬ 
ing twigs, the purple young shoots, and the rich and 
handsome green hue of the foliage of this Bamboo 
all entitle it to the First-class Certificate awarded it. 
Besides being useful for conservatory work, it is 
perfectly hardy and retains its foliage throughout 
the winter in excellent condition. Messrs. J. Veitch 
& Sons, and A. B. Freeman-Mitford, Esq., C.B., 
Batsford Park, Moreton-in-Marsh. 
Phyllostachys castillonis— The lanceolate, 
