January 16, 1897. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
311 
in small pots, and started thus. A night tempera¬ 
ture of from 6o° to 65° will be required, but it is not 
desirable to give too much heat, or the plants will 
become weakened thereby. Sprinkle them over at 
least twice a day with a syringe, and they will not 
be long in starting into growth. The remainder of 
the tubers may be allowed to rest on for the present, 
as they will be all the better for the respite, and will 
then form a good succession to the earlier plants. 
Gloxinias. —In addition to the old plants it will 
be necessary to make several sowings in order to 
keep a constant succession of these charmiDg plants 
throughout the year. A sowing should be made at 
once, and the seed pans placed under similar con¬ 
ditions to those given the Begonias. The plants 
resulting will come into flower towards the end of 
June and the beginning of July. 
Cyclamens. —It is often desirable to provide a 
succession to those plants obtained from the autumn 
sowing. A little seed may, therefore, be put in now 
to effect this purpose. An equable temperature of 
about 6o Q will assist in obviating the rather slow and 
irregular way in which Cyclamen seed not in¬ 
frequently germinates. The young plants from the 
autumn sowing should be kept steadily moving. Do 
not coddle them, but avoid draughts, and give them 
all the light possible. A place on a shelf near the 
glass suits them capitally. Considerable care will 
be needed in watering, for the plants are rather 
touchy in the earlier stages. Once let the soil get 
sour and sodden, and the plants absolutely refuse to 
grow, and never produce good stuff, for the check 
seems to last throughout the year. 
Fuchsias. —Small plants are always handy, as they 
are so useful, not only for conservatory decoration, 
but for the filling of small ornamental baskets and 
stands within the mansion. A quantity of cuttings 
should be struck early in the year, and these turn 
into nice stuff in 48's and 32’s before the end of the 
summer. A few of the old plants should be taken 
out of their retirement, slightly pruned, shortening 
the branches about half-way, and placed in heat. A 
house or pit in which the forcing of Lilacs, Deutzias, 
Spiraeas, etc., is going on will answer admirably. 
As soon as the growths are a couple of inches in 
length, they may be taken off with a small heel, 
inserted five or six in a large thumb-pot, and plunged 
in a propagating frame to root.— A. S. G. 
-- 
ORCHID NOTES & GLEANINGS. 
By The Editor. 
Laelia anceps norwoodensis. —The special 
feature of this variety is its rich colouring. In form 
it does not differ from the type, but nevertheless 
leaves nothing to be desired on the score of size. 
The sepals are of a warm rose fading almost to 
white at the very base only. The narrowly elliptic 
petals are a shade or two darker, the colouring 
becoming more decidedly intensified towards the tip. 
The lip, however, is the richest and most conspicuous 
organ of the flower, the terminal and side lobes 
being of an intense carmine-crimson, and appearing 
even more brilliant under artificial light. The 
interior of the tube is heavily and closely striped 
with dark crimson-purple on a white ground. The 
varietal name has been given to distinguish the 
variety from the more common and less richly 
coloured forms of the species in the collection of 
T. McMeekin, Esq., Falkland Park, South Norwood 
Hill. 
Phalaenopsis Esmeralda. — The variations 
amongst the foliage of individuals of an importation 
of this species are remarkable. One would almost 
take them to be different varieties, or even species 
in some instances. The leaves of some plants are 
narrow and either green or heavily tinted with 
purple, while in other cases they are so broad as 
to resemble those of P. violacea or others of that 
type. The flowers themselves do vary to some 
extent, but chiefly in the matter of colour. The 
flower spikes are upright, slender, and bear the 
flowers towards the apex. The above variations we 
noted in the collection of Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, 
Chelsea. 
Odontoglossum Pescatorei flowering at the 
apex of the pseudobulbs. —This peculiarity we 
have noted in the case of O. crispum ; but do not 
recollect a similar instance occurring in this species. 
At present there is a plant in the cool Orchid house 
at Falkland Park, South Norwood Hill, bearing a 
panicle of flowers from the axil of the most recently 
produced pseudobulb. On the same plant a pseudo¬ 
bulb, which is a twelvemonth older than that above 
mentioned, carries a raceme of flowers at the apex 
and between the apical pair of leaves. Surely this 
must denote healthy vigour and suitable treatment 
to make the old or “ back-bulbs ” flower a second 
time from an unwonted position. 
Cypripedium Zeno. —This secondary hybrid 
first appeared in public at a meeting of the Royal 
Horticultural Society, on December nth, 1894, 
when it was exhibited by Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, 
Chelsea. It was raised from C. nitens, as the seed 
bearer, crossed with C. insigne Chantini, two very 
beautiful forms. The female parent, C. nitens was 
the resulting progeny of C. villosum crossed with the 
pollen of C. insigne Maulei, the latter of which gave 
it the beautiful spotting for which it was noted. The 
secondary crossing, which resulted in that named C. 
Zeno, has given rise to a considerable amount of 
variation, some of the seedlings leaning strongly to 
C. nitens, while others favour C. villosum. Amongst 
the seedlings we recently noted one that favoured the 
atter parent, or might be regarded as indicating the 
variety C. villosum Boxallii. The dorsal sepal was 
of a dark shining brown or nearly black with a white 
margin. The rest of the flower was of a glittering 
brown. Another variety had the dorsal sepal heavily 
blotched after the manner of C. nitens, yet neither of 
these were like the originals. All are comprehended 
under the name of Zeno, just as the various types of 
C. lathamianum are classed under that heading, and 
vary considerably in quality. 
Dendrobium Phalaenopsis nobilius. —The 
flowers of this beautiful and highly coloured variety 
are moderate in size and recall those of D. bigibbum 
to some extent, but the petals are different in form, 
being broadly lozenge-shaped, and suddenly 
narrowed to an acute tip. They are of a rich rosy 
carmine fading to the base. The sepals are several 
shades paler, being pink with rosy tips. The lip, on 
the contrary, is wholly of a rich crimson. Even in 
the cut state the flowers are very durable, lasting in 
water for ten days to a fortnight in very presentable 
condition. The sprays are graceful and suitable for 
mixing with cut flowers of various kinds. Flowers 
were furnished us by Mr. Wright, gardener to T. 
McMeekin, Esq., Falkland Park, South Norwood 
Hill. The importation of D. Phalaenopsis in 
quantity to gardens a few years ago was an event of 
the greatest importance, and an occurrence that all 
too seldom happens. 
- 
©leanings from flit; !©urlti 
of Sriencq. 
Nitragin.—-This is a name proposed by Dr. 
Nobbe to include all the bacteria to be found in the 
nodules of plants belonging to the Pea family, and 
which are now generally considered to be instru¬ 
mental in the fixation of the free nitrogen of the 
atmosphere in the roots of those plants, resulting in 
great advantage not only to them but to other crops 
that may be made to follow them in the same 
ground. Dr. Nobbe has isolated about twenty 
species of these bacteria from the roots of various 
plants. A point of the argument is that a crop of 
Peas, Clover, Beans, or other allied subject may be 
raised and harvested off a piece of ground, and if 
nothing else except the roots are left, the ground 
will be richer in nitrogen than it was previous to the 
planting or sowing of the said crop. The ground is 
richer in combined nitrogen than the ordinary 
supply brought down from the atmosphere by means 
of rain will account for, plus that which the long or 
deeply penetrating roots are able to draw from the 
subsoil and store in roots near the surface. The 
question arises, whence came the additional nitro¬ 
gen ? For many years past experiments have been 
carried on by various scientific men with the view of 
determining whence this extra supply of nitrogen in 
the combined form which plants are able to collect 
and assimilate is derived. It is well recognised that 
the higher plants generally are unable of themselves 
to combinenitrogen with any other element so that 
they can utilise it. The results of many experiments 
go to prove that the bacteria, or micro-organisms 
in the roots of various members of the Pea family, 
are able to do that. 
Bacillus radicicola. —An important paper on 
this microbe has been contributed to a German 
bacteriological journal showing that this organism 
is capable, under different conditions, to live upon 
more than one host plant. Bateria were isolated 
from the roots of Lucerne (Medicago sativa), and 
cultivated in infusions derived from Lucerne and 
White Mustard (Brassica alba) respectively. The 
microbes in question flourished abundantly in the 
Lucerne gelatine from first to last of the experiments. 
In that of White Mustard, however, they gradually 
declined in vigour, showing that they could not 
readily adapt themselves to the new kind of food. 
The microbes from the nodules of Lucerne were next 
tried by gradually accustoming them to the White 
Mustard infusion, and during six months of this 
training it was proved that they could, by gradual 
degrees, be made to live and flourish in this (to them) 
unnatural and new food. At the end of that time the 
bacteria took readily to the White Mustard infusion 
in a pure state Even after this training, however, 
they readily accepted their original food of Lucerne, 
so that their acquired taste had in no way impaired 
their appetite for the last-named. 
Symbiosis. —-The bacteria in the nodules of the 
Pea family live upon their respective host plants, 
drawing upon them, presumably, for all the other 
food they require, with the exception of nitrogen. 
On the other hand the rich and abundant supply of 
nitrogen with which they furnish their host plants, 
enables the latter to make such vigorous growth that 
they do not feel at all burdened in supporting the 
bacteria. Both the leguminous plants and the 
bacteria are, therefore, of mutual advantage to one 
another, and in both cases would get on but poorly 
if separated from one another. This combined 
method of living together for mutual advantage is 
spoken of as symbiosis. There are many instances 
of it in nature, and probably many other cases and 
forms of it will yet be discovered in the near future. 
Practical advantages to the gardener.—It 
is an old notion that science and scientific questions 
are merely theory—a term that is usually synony¬ 
mous with hypothesis, but wrongly so —and therefore 
of no practical value to a gardener. A gardener's 
time need not be wasted in scientific experiments of 
the above nature, as such trials are best left to men 
whose duty it is to carry them out, and who, alone, 
are most competent to deal with them. It will be 
sufficient for the practical man to adopt any plan of 
cultivation when it has been clearly demonstrated 
that some practical result will accrue from it. At 
the present state of the science it will be quite 
sufficient for the gardener to know that all cultivated 
leguminous plants are able to collect of their own 
accord all the nitrogen that is necessary for their 
welfare. In such cases it would be a waste of re¬ 
sources and needless expense to apply nitrogen as a 
separate manure to Peas, Beans, Scarlet Runners 
&c. On the other hand it would be of the highest 
importance economically to observe a rotation of 
vegetable cropping that would make such plants 
follow leguminous crops that, under ordinary condi¬ 
tions, require a considerable supply of nitrogen to 
enable them to produce a heavy crop. The valuable 
nitrogen thus stored up in the surface soil by the Pea 
crop of the previous year, could be utilised to great 
advantage, thereby rendering the application of a 
complete and expensive manure unnecessary. Due 
allowance would have to be made for the natural 
poverty of thin and gravelly s oils, not forgetting the 
absolute necessity for water. 
Eelworms and Onions. —We are already only 
too familiar with the pests known as eelworms in 
Carnations, Phloxes, Cucumbers, Hyacinths and 
various other cultivated plants. There are several 
species ofeelworm, of various sizes, but all agreeing 
in being quite microscopical in their dimensions, and 
invisible to the naked eye. We have, however, been 
able to detect them in the stems of late flowering 
Phloxes by the use of a simple lens. The widely 
spread Tylenchus radicicola, otherwise known as T. 
devastatrix seems likely to give us greater trouble in 
the near future by attacking Onion crops. The worms 
get into the leaves, causing them to become unduly 
inflated in the middle, and should the attack be a 
bad one, as it usually is in individual plants or even 
large quantities of them growing in proximity, then 
the plants put on a sickly yellow appearance, and 
soon after die outright, especially if the plants are 
attacked while yet quite young. The pest gets into 
the interior of the plants, disorganising their tissues 
completely. The only way of combating eelworms 
in Onions is to dig up the affected Onions carefully 
and burn them. Fresh ground at some distance 
should be selected for the next season’s crop. 
