88 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
September 16, 1899. 
of the prettiest, the straw-yellow flowers 
being spotted with brown at the mouth of 
the pouch. Oncidium longipes is naturally 
dwarf, but is here taller with more numer¬ 
ous flowers than usual. A small piece of 
Odontoglossum aspidorhinum carried nine¬ 
teen spikes of its flowers, which remind one 
of a large form of O. constrictum. The 
yellow sepals and petals, and golden lip of 
Oncidium cristatum are both distinct and 
pretty. The Bee Orchid (Oncidium dasy- 
tile) is also in season. The huge white 
flowers, especially the great expanded lip of 
Catasetum Bungerothii are much larger 
than we have hitherto seen them. The 
celebrated collection of Calanthes is just 
finishing up splendid pseudobulbs in many 
cases, so that a fine treat is again in store 
for the public at some future Drill Hall 
meeting in winter. Two houses are largely 
occupied with them ; and some of them are 
already showing their flower spikes. A 
pretty little Orchid, though large for the 
genus, is Polystachya lawrenceana, with 
yellow flowers, and a pinky-white lip. P. 
odorata alongside of it has small yellow 
flowers. Microstylis bella, with dark purple 
flowers and a deeply fringed lip, may be 
described as one of those miniature pets 
which find a friendly refuge at Burford 
Lodge. In the same house is a tank worth¬ 
ily filled with a large pan of Ouvrirandra 
fenestralis, the Lattice Leaf Plant, in first- 
class condition. Very rarely do we see it in 
such healthy form as it is here. 
Passing on we came to a fine batch of 
Dendrobium Phalaenopsis schroderianum, 
in many beautiful varieties, and flowering 
freely. D. formosum added its quota to 
the general display. Phalaenopsis grandi- 
flora carried huge white flowers with a con¬ 
spicuous yellow disc. About fifteen to 
twenty flowers were borne by Trias disci- 
flora, spotted with crimson on a pale yellow 
ground. A fine hybrid is Cypripedium ash- 
burtonianum expansum, freely spotted on 
the large dorsal sepal. A fine variety of 
Cattleya Acklandiae is also in bloom, the 
sepals and petals being handsomely 
blotched. The neat form of the flower, and 
the dark blue lip of Zygopetalum maxillare 
are very attractive. Along with Prominea 
citrina was P. stapelioides, both in bloom, 
the lip of the latter being velvety black, 
with a purple edge and the whole not unlike 
a Stapelia. Masdevaliea infracta rosea (the 
first of the genus introduced),Odontoglossum 
bictonense album, and O. Uro-Skinneri 
are also in bloom. In the next house 
entered Cypripedium niveum, C. concolor, 
the hybrid Lawrebel (raised here), C. jav- 
anico-superbiens,and Habenaria rhodochila, 
an exotic species allied to our native Butter ■ 
fly Orchids, but having an orange-scarlet 
lip, were all uncommon and interesting 
subjects. 
Passing on we came upon Cypripedium 
Exul, Epiphronitis Veitchi, Trichopilia 
Lehmanni, with large, white flowers, and 
Maxillaria striata grandiflora, strikingly 
striped with reddish-brown on a yellow 
ground. The collection is rich in Coelo- 
gynes, this house containing flowering sam¬ 
ples of C. barbata. C. fimbriata and C. 
fuliginosa, bearded and brown. Oncidiums 
include O. incurvum, O. sphacelatum and 
O. Kramerianum. Very pretty is Dendro¬ 
bium longicornu, with its white flowers and 
salmon-orange throat. The Eucharis Den- 
drobe (D. Dearei) owes the name to its 
green throat. An uncommon Cattleya is 
C. speciosissima, having soft pink sepals 
and petals, and a dark crimson-purple lip. 
Cypripedium calurum is a hybrid with a 
purple lip and rosy sepals and petals. The 
cool Odontoglossum house is quite a 
recently built house standing apart from all 
others of the range. The plants are mostly 
of recent importation, but many are flower¬ 
ing, particularly varieties of O. crispum. 
O. harryannm is finely coloured of its kind. 
Oncidium crispum, with a panicled stem, 
3 ft. high, is preparing to bloom. The 
same may be said of O. varicosum, 3 ft. to 
4 ft. high. Even Orchid growers must ad¬ 
mit that the above constitutes an excellent 
list of species in bloom at this, for them, 
dull period; and many are very uncommon. 
-——- 
Appointments.—Mr. J. Whytock, gardener to Earl 
Fitzwilliam, Coollattin Park, Shillelagh, is the 
fortunate candidate for the vacancy of Dalkeith 
Palace Gardens, lately directed by Mr. Malcolm 
Dunn. Mr. F. Edwards, some time foreman at 
Bushy House, has been promoted as head gardener 
to A. Thompson, Esq., Mymwood House, Hatfield. 
Mr. F. Dunn, bailiff and gardener for the late Sir 
Francis and Lady Truscott, at Oakleigh, East Grin- 
stead, Sussex, has been appointed sub-agent on the 
estate of the Hon. Dudley H. Ryder, at Wester- 
brook Hay, Hemel Hampstead. 
Tropaeolum speciosum is the glory of many a 
shepherd’s hut just now in the Perthshire Highlands, 
far up the lonely glens and miles from anywhere. 
The Crimean Lime (Tilia petiolaris) is still in full 
bloom in Killin, N.B., whereas at London it flowers 
in July. A large and handsome specimen in a villa 
garden is feathered to the ground. 
Messrs. Stevens & Smith—We understand that 
Mr. J. C. Stevens, who has carried on business for 
many years at Stevens’ Auction Rooms, 38, 
King Street, Covent Garden, London, W.C., has 
taken into partnership Mr. D. Pell-Smith, who 
for some years, and until recently, has held a respon¬ 
sible position with Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, 
Nurserymen, Chelsea. The horticultural branch of 
the business will now receive more particular 
attention than was formerly the case; and this 
department we believe will be taken in hand by Mr. 
Smith,who has a wide experience in all that pertains 
to nursery and garden work and business. 
Wiival and Birkenhead Agricultural Society (next 
year's show).—At a meeting of the Executive Com¬ 
mittee, held at the society's offices to-day (Tuesday, 
September 12th), it was unanimously resolved, on 
the motion of the President (Mr. W. H. Lever), to 
recommend to the Executive for next year that the 
show be held on August 3rd, 4th and 6th, being the 
Bank Holiday and preceding B'riday and Saturday. 
Our Yield of Wheat. —Thirty years ago, says The 
Farmer's Gazette, the average price of English Wheat 
was 63s. 9d. per quarter. In 1894 the average had 
fallen as low as 22s. rod., and although this year 
there has been a slight recovery, and the average is 
likely to come out at something over 30s., it will be 
seen that in comparison with the good old times 
present prices are not by any means encouraging, 
It was not until 1894 that the average price of Eng¬ 
lish Wheat had fallen under 40s. per quarter. Last 
year’s yield of 3474 bushels per acre was the largest 
crop of English Wheat grown for over twenty years 
The nearest approach was in 1S96, when the average 
yield amounted to 33 68 bushels per acre. In 1895 
the yield per acre fell as low as 26 23 bushels, and 
in 1893 to 25 95 bushels, so that there was an in¬ 
crease last year of 8 79 bushels per acre—a very sub¬ 
stantial one. 
The Biggest Thing in Wheat Fields.— California is 
said to have the honour of possessing the largest 
wheat field in the world. The field in question is a 
little over six miles square and contains about 25,000 
acres. An interesting calculation gives that to plough 
it, taking a two-foot furrow, the plough would have 
to travel nearly 100,000 miles. Travelling at the 
rate of twenty miles a day, exclusive of Sundays, it 
would take over sixteen years to complete the opera¬ 
tion. The owner of the farm containing this mam¬ 
moth field has over a 1,000 horses at work and 
considering the amount of work to be done this 
would not appear to be one too many. 
Basic Slag greatly assists the Clover in lawns and, 
of course, also aids the grass. It supplies two most 
important soil ingredients, namely, lime and phos¬ 
phoric acid. The clover, through the medium of its 
root nodules, assimilates free nitrogen from the atmos¬ 
phere, and, say, from an application of basic slag, a 
third and greatly needed element is gathered for use. 
Three cwt. per acre is the quantity generally used. 
Mr. Herbert Spooner, lately a Chiswick student, has 
been appointed to a charge at Kew. 
Weather in London.—No more rain has fallen. 
The weather is, however, much cooler and has con¬ 
tinued, more or less, dull. Indeed, so cold have one 
or two days been, that overcoats are again requis- 
tioned. Saturday was the brightest day. Tuesday, 
September 12th, was bright. 
A Norfolk Correspondent asks us for the address of 
the secretary of the Royal Horticultural Society’s 
office. It is 117, Victoria Street, Westminster, and 
catalogues of the R.H.S., Crystal Palace Fruit, or 
other large shows, may be applied for at this address. 
United Horticultural Benefit Provident Society.-^ 
The Annual Dinner of the above society will take 
place at the Holborn Restaurant, High Holborn, 
W. C., on Thursday, October 5th, at 6.30 p.m. 
W. Y. Baker, Esq., has kindly consented to preside 
on this occasion. 
Open Spaces. —The area of open spaces in London, 
which has been doubled within the last ten years, 
now amounts to 3,753 acres. 
Agave americana.—Notable cases of this plant’s 
flowering are not rare, yet they are generally taken 
note of. In American Gardening for August 12th, the 
photo of an excellent sample of this, the Century 
Plant, appears. The flower stem Is 25 ft. high with 
a girth of 14 in. at the base. It carries twenty-five 
trusses of bloom. A short while ago the leaves from 
tip to tip, when stretched horizontally, measured 
16 ft. An old observer of this plant tells of it having 
been a monster in size some sixty-five years ago dur¬ 
ing his Own boyhood. But the plant is now fast 
declining and will soon be dead. 
New Daffodils for 1899 .—Those who have seen the 
exhibits of the beautiful hybrid Narcissi made by 
Rev. G. H. Engleheart at various of the spring meet¬ 
ings held by the R.H.S. in the Drill Hall, West¬ 
minster,will remember appreciatively their purity and 
loveliness. Messrs. Barr & Sons, King Street, Covent 
Garden, have, we note from their Daffodil Caalogute 
now before us, secured the complete stock of some of 
the best varieties raised by Mr. Engleheart. The 
names of the most recent of other hybrid Narcissi, 
in all sections, such as Duke of Bedford, the largest 
trumpet " Daff ” there is; Ray Smith, a rich yellow 
trumpet variety, the Twins (Tridymus), and others 
are also among their list of new Daffodils for 1899. 
A Farmer's Cruelty.—On Thursday, September 7th, 
at Mansfield, a farmer was fined for cruelty to 
geese. He had put quills through the nostrils of the 
birds in order to keep them out of the cornfields. 
Growing for Exhibition.—In a little article on the 
above In American Gardening, the attention is called 
to such facts as fineness of form, smoothness and 
good colour as well as firm substance in such crops 
as Parsnips, Carrots and Salsify, to be the aim much 
rather than mere size and bulk. Crops to secure 
these points must have a well-mellowed soil to grow 
id, and one which has been previously enriched by 
good manure and moisture, which must always be 
abundant. 
Carnations.—In America, where Carnation culture 
is so ubiquitous, we yet find, after all is said and done, 
that the larger part of their fine formed and 
brilliantly coloured varieties are without fragrance. 
They have yet something left to strive for. 
Mode of Getting Rid of Snails.—The creatures are 
passionately fond of bran. When this food Is placed 
out for them they leave it as seldom as possible, 
and when th 5 y do retire for a time, they return more 
eagerly to again feed on it. This suggests a mode of 
freeing any piece of ground of the pest. You have 
only to place over little heaps of bran pieces of 
broken pipes, or pots, or vessels of any kind, which 
may shelter the food from the rain, and your work is 
done. The snails will congregrate below, and you 
can in a short time destroy vast multitudes of them. 
—Annales des JardinUrs Amateurs. 
Sentiment.— 
Plough Deep ! 
Sow not thy precious seeds 
Among the scarce uprooted weeds, 
Or thou shalt weep 
To find thy crops all choked and dead, 
And nought but Thorns and Tares instead. 
Then plough down deep, 
The promise ringing in thy ears 
That those who sow their seeds in tears 
In joy shall reap. 
— A. G. Evans, in " The Canadian Horticulturist." 
