April 3, 1897. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
489 
flower early, but there is a good chance of seeing by 
the first flower whether they are likely to be of 
service. 
Tomatos. —T. Machm : We always prefer the 
single rod system of growing Tomatos, because we 
have found it to be a surer method of obtaining a 
full crop of fruit than what may be termed the 
•• extension ” method. Still, this does not mean that 
the “ extension ” plan is a failure. On the contrary 
in a good season it may yield excellent results. 
Where a sufficient number of plants cannot be 
obtained to fill the space, by training them single 
rod fashion it is the best way to solve the difficulty. 
You may thus economise your plants by training 
them as you propose. 
Chionodoxa Tmolusii is fully a fortnight, some¬ 
times three weeks later in blooming than C. Luciliae, 
W. Rushton. The flowers resemble those of C. 
Luciliae, but they are larger, and the area of white 
in the centre of the flower is greater. 
Primroses upside down. —Octoroon comes up with 
a quaint old superstition that obtains in country 
places with regard to the method of procuring 
coloured Primroses. It is said that in order to 
induce the yellow Primroses to produce coloured 
flowers it is necessary to plant them upside down in 
cow manure. Our correspondent wishes to know 
if there is any truth in this. 
We should imagine that this fallacy had been 
effectually disposed of long ere this, but it seems 
otherwise. To plant a poor Primrose upside down 
is little short of barbarous, and cannot possibly have 
any other effect than killing the plant nine times out 
of ten. If at the tenth time there happens that a plant 
with coloured flowers makes its appearance it can only 
be caused by some accidental variation such as 
sporting. Rich soil and change of situation will 
cause alterations and modifications in some things, 
but—don’t plant your plants upside down. 
Cyclamen. —The practice of growing Cyclamen on 
year after year has been proved a mistake, Caligno. 
Much finer flowers, both as to colour and size are 
obtained from young plants. A good time to sow is 
in the early part of November, which allows the 
plants about fifteen months from seed sowing to the 
time when they are expected to be in full flower. 
Other good growers sow their seed as early as 
August, thus giving their plants a still longer season 
in which to grow. The plants to flower in one 
season thus overlap those grown on to flower during 
another for fully six months. 
--*.- 
THE COMMON JUNIPER 
(Juniperus communis). 
Only three species of Coniferous trees, the Yew, the 
Scotch Pine, and the Common Juniper, are found 
wild in the British Isles. As will be inferred from 
the annexed illustration, the habit of the common 
Juniper varies to a wide extent, and on our commons 
and downs, it ranges from a low spreading shrub 
(as at Ogwen Lake, on the Snowdon range of hills), 
to a ragged tapering tree of 25 ft. in height, as one 
sometimes sees on the chalky downs of southern 
England. Some specimens are tall, straight, and of 
gradual taper throughout, others scrubby of growth 
and forming wide expanses of procumbent shoots 
that often do not reach a foot from the ground, while 
others again form wonderful hemispherical masses of 
the brightest tinted foliage, or shoot up to 6 ft. or 
8 ft. in height, and perfectly pyramidal as it they 
had been trimmed with the shears or pruning hook. 
It is of the latter, the so-called Irish Juniper 
(J. communis hibernica) that I wish particularly to 
speak, for this very distinct form is not confined to 
the Emerald Isle, as is usually stated, I am now well 
convinced. Both on the Kentish and Hertfordshire 
commons I have found specimens equally columnar 
in habit, and with the branches as closely adpressed 
to the main stem as any that have ever found their 
way across the English Channel. Along the 
boundary of a woodland at Keston, in Kent, there 
are many self-sown plants of the Common Juniper 
that I have found it quite impossible to detect from 
those that come from Ireland ; while on Shrub Hill 
Common, near Hemel Hempstead (where the 
accompanying illustration was taken by Mr. 
Robertson, of Boxmoor), there are, or rather were, 
several perfectly.erect specimens of from 4 ft. to 6 ft. 
in height. The procumbent variety (J. communis 
nana) I have often met with at high elevations on the 
Welsh hills, there forming the daintiest and neatest 
carpet of the brightest of silvery green foliage. No 
amount of coaxing in the best soil in lowland 
situations has the least effect on this dwarf Juniper, 
it always remaining as flat and prim as a cushion— 
at least this is my experience of the plant after many 
years of cultivation, — A. D. Webster. 
-—- 
AN AMATEUR’S ORCHIDS. 
I have been very much interested in the page you 
have devoted to your " amateur ” readers. Many of 
them grow Orchids, and I suppose many more wish 
they could. No one should ever take these plants 
in hand unless they have a real regard for them. 
If only a fair amount of success is attained, it is 
astonishing how the love of cultivating them grows ; 
and a constant yearning takes possession of the 
grower to add another and still another, although 
the space available has long been filled up. 
This goes on till suspended from the roof and 
shelves, wherever they can be put, there are generally 
quite as many plants as the stages can contain. 
The obstacles an amateur has to overcome are 
considerable. Generally he builds his own houses, 
and heats them too. They may not be models like 
those which are seen in a showyard. Still, it is 
really wonderful what can be done when care and 
skill are brought to bear on the treatment of the 
plants. Failures occur, no doubt, but that happens 
with the best practical growers at times, who have 
not the same excuse as gentlemen who leave for 
business at nine o’clock in the morning, and do not 
see their plants again till five in the afternoon. 
Airing and shading have to be done whether it is 
suitable or not, unless the good lady of the house 
gives a look at them, and sees that the fire is kept up 
for the tropical subjects. The fortunate possessor of 
such a helpmeet is no doubt grateful as one should be. 
That good specimens are grown under these con¬ 
ditions is all the more creditable In many 
instances growth is rather quick for the limited 
space, and so plants have to be put away when just 
at their best, and a fresh start has to be made with 
smaller specimens. 
The collection of Peter Ewing, Esq., F.L.S., is 
worthy of notice in your columns. Two small span- 
roofed houses are joined to his villa, one of which is 
used as a stove, and half the space is devoted to 
Cyprepediums, all in good health. Mr. Ewing is the 
most successful grower of the C. bellatulum type 
that I have seen. He attributes his success chiefly 
to the fact that the leaves are kept dry, and no 
sphagnum is allowed near the surface of the pots. 
In any case thfey are splendidly done, C. Godefroyae, 
C. concolor, and C. niveus, growing and flowering 
freely. Among others the following are a few of the 
best: C. oenanthum superbum, C spicerianuro, C. 
Chantini, C. insigne Maulei, C. Exul, C. virens, C. 
Doris, C. Almos, C. callosum, C. villosum, C. Box- 
allii, C. Charlesworthii, C. chamberlainianum, C. 
crossianum, C. bullenianum, C. Hookerae, C. 
hirsutissimum, C. Ashburntoniae, C. Dauthierii, C. 
lathamianum, C. Curtisii, C. grande, and many 
more fine sorts. 
Dendrobes are numerous, and many of the best 
forms are to be seen, as also a promising lot of 
hybrids that have not yet flowered. D. nobile is 
represented by plants from all the various districts. 
D. n. nobilius is still unsurpassed for fine colour and 
size. 
Then there are the hybrid forms : such as 
D. Cooksoni x nobile, D. Ainsworthii, and D. 
leechianum. The finest form of this hybrid I have 
seen is flowering in this collection. A good bit of 
D. n. murrhinianum is showing for flower. 
Among the D. wardianum section a good plant of 
the rare D. w. candidum has cropped up. D. crassi- 
node, D. c. barberianum, D. Farmeri, D. 
heterocarpum, D. devonianum, D. aJbo-sanguineum 
(a very fine plant), D. Phalaenopsis schroderianum, 
D. P. statterianum, D. lituiflorum (very fine), D, 
nobile Cooksonii, D n. elegans, D. thyrsiflorum and 
D. densiflorum are all in fine cond tion. Suspended 
from the roof are splendid specimens of Odontoglos- 
sum citrosmum, Cattleyas and Laelias. Noticeable 
are some highly coloured forms of L. pumila and L. 
dayana. Here may be seen Coelogyne cristata, C. 
c. lemoniana and C. speciosa. The latter is nearly 
always in flower. Lycaste Skinnerii, L. lawrenceana 
and L. aroma tica, Zygopetalum mackayii and Z. 
intermedium, Pleione Lagenaria, P. Wallichii, P. 
maculata, and various other species are al doing 
well. 
The other house is filled with cool and intermediate 
sorts, chiefly Odontoglossums, of which there are 
about 300 of O. crispum. Many fine forms have been 
purchased in flower, and imported ones have turned 
out well. A grand white form finely spotted was 
conspicuous. Others grown here are O. Hallii, 
O. ramosissimum, O. wilckeanum, O. arnoldianum, 
O. cirrhosum, O. Hallii zanthoglossum, O. hastila- 
bium, O. harryanum, O. nebulosum, O. pulchellum 
majus, O. grande, and the best forms of O. Rossii, 
O. Cervantesii and good forms of O. Pescatorei. 
Many of them are showing for flower. Oncidium 
VARIETIES OF THE COMMON JUNIPER ON SHRUB-HILL COMMON. 
