October 21, 1899. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
119 
ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
The next fruit and floral meeting of the Royal 
Horticultural Society will be held on Tuesday, 
October 24th,-in the Drill Hall, James Street, 
Westminster, 1 to 4 p.m. A lecture on “ Growth of 
the Fruit Trade " will be given by Mr. Geo. Monro, 
V.M.H., at 3 o’clock. 
The War Office having asked for the Drill Hall of 
the London Scottish Volunteers (in which the meet¬ 
ings of the Royal Horticultural Society are held) to 
be placed at its disposal for the temporary accommo¬ 
dation of 300 soldiers en route for South Africa, it is 
probable that the society's meeting on October 24th 
will have to be held in the Drill Hall of ihe Queen’s 
Westminster Volunteers, which adjoins that of the 
London Scottish, being actually the next door. If 
this should be the case Fellows and exhibitors are 
requested to make the best of an unavoidable incon¬ 
venience, which, it is hoped, will not have to be 
repeated. 
The following dates have been fixed provisionally 
for meetings in 1900 :—January 9th, 23rd ; February 
13th, 27th; March 13th, 27th; April 10th, 24th; 
May 8th, 23rd, 24th, 25th (Temple); June 5th, 19th, 
27th (Richmond); July 3rd, 17th, 31st; August 14th, 
28th; September nth, 25th, 27th, 28ih, 29th 
(Crystal Palace); October 9th, 23rd; November 6tb, 
20th; December 4th, 18th; January (1901) 15th, 
29th; February 12th. 
Gentlemen willing to lecture on any of these dates 
are requested to communicate with the Secretary, 
117, Victoria Street, S.W., at once. 
Trials will be made at Chiswick in 1900 with the 
following subjects;— 
(1) Tulips for outdoor decoration, twelve bulbs of 
each variety should be sent at ouce to the superinten¬ 
dent, R.H.S. Gardens, Chiswick, W. Each variety 
should be marked with its colour and whether early, 
mid-season, or late. 
(2) Phlox decussata : Two plants of each should 
be sent on or before March 1st. 
(3) Cactus Dahlias: The 1899 trial will be 
repeated. Any new varieties, two plants of each 
should be sent in April. 
(4) Potatos, new varieties: Twenty tubers to be 
sent before February 1st. Also a trial of distinctly 
early Potatos, both old and new varieties requested. 
(5) Tomatos, for outdoors only: Seed before 
February 1st. 
(6) Peas, half pint to be sent in January. 
(7) Celeriac : Seed in January. 
The Royal Horticultural Society will hold its next 
examination in horticulture on Tuesday, April 17th, 
1900. For syllabus, apply to the Secretary, R.H.S., 
117, Victoria Street, S.W , enclosing a stamp. 
—— . 0 . —-- 
PLANTS RECENTLY CERTIFICATED. 
The awards mentioned hereunder were made by the 
Royal Horticultural Society on the 10th inst. 
Orchid Committee. 
Odontoglossum crispum Daphne. —The sepals 
of this variety are lanceolate, with a large, soft, rosy 
blotch covering the greater portion, so that the white 
ground is almost hidden. The ovate petals are white 
with two or three small blotches of the same peculiar 
shade on the centre of the white ground. The lip 
has a large, central, cinnamon blotch on the centre, 
and deeply indented in front and behind. On the 
whole the variety is very distinct. (Award of Merit.) 
W. Thompson, Esq. (gardener, Mr. W. Stevens), 
Walton Grange, Stone, Staffs. 
Odontoglossum grande pitteanum.— The brown 
colour forming the usual blotches of this species has 
been washed out, as it were, leaving the sepals and 
petals of a soft yellow, with darker yellow bars where 
the brown of the type should be. The lip is almost 
white, with a pale yellow zone at the base. (Award 
of Merit.) H. T. Pitt, Esq. (gardener, Mr. F. W. 
Thorougood), Rosslyn, Stamford Hill. 
Epidendrum lauchianum. — This bears long, 
arching and graceful racemes of small flowers, the 
sepals and petals of which are brown, and the small, 
folded lip green. (Botanical Certificate.) Royal 
Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin. 
Floral Committee. 
Aster Novi-Belgii Robert Parker var. nanus. 
^-The flowers of this variety are very numerous, 
mauve, and otherwise similar to Robert Parker,from 
which it was raised as a seedling. The plant is 
much dwarfer, however, being only 2 ft. high, where¬ 
as the original is 4 ft. or 5 ft. (Award of Merit.) F. 
A. Bevan, Esq. (gardener, Mr. W. H. Lees), Trent 
Park, New Barnet. 
Aster Amellus Distinction. —The usual blue- 
purple colour of the typical A. Amellus has here 
given place to a distinct shade of rose. The dwarf 
habit, earliness, and large flowers of all the varieties 
of A. Amellus make them useful adjuncts to the 
adornment of the outdoor garden during August, 
September, and October. (Award of Merit.) F. A. 
BevaD, Esq. 
Fruit and Vegetable Committee. 
Apple The Baron. —The size, shape, and quali¬ 
ties generally of this variety are identical wiih those 
of Dumelow’s Seedling (otherwise known as Welling¬ 
ton), from which it is a seedling. The difference is 
chiefly in colour, the new variety being heavily over¬ 
laid with red on the exposed side. (Award of Merit) 
Messrs. S. Spooner & Sons, Hounslow. 
Apple Charles Ross.—See p. 118. 
* 
Lifting Bedding Plants. —In certain damp, cold, 
bleak and exposed lands, there are certain plants, 
which though ordinarily safe enough to leave out,are 
not so in other gardens whose conditions in the above 
respects are different. What these plants are which 
he finds are not safe when left out, the cultivator 
no doubt has before now determined. Lobelia 
cardinalis in a certain garden near Wakefield, Yorks., 
could never be relied upon, for in the soil there it 
seemed to perish, shrink, mould and decay. We 
annually lifted it and boxed the roots. Very 
little water is required all winter for plants so 
treated. Then of course at this season the land 
must be cleared. The bulbs are waiting to be put 
in, so with the bedding Violas, the Wallflowers, 
shrubs and so on. So now is the last chance of 
making up any deficit in the number of our next 
season’s plants. As a rule it is a hard matter to get 
sufficent cuttings in September, and many of them 
damp off. It is therefore the more discreet plan to 
lift the bushiest and best of the old plants, to trim 
them and either to pot them into 5-in. pots or, 
which is not so preferable, box them off. Procure 
a stout fork or spade and carefully ease up the 
plants, such as Pelargoniums, ViDcas, and other 
things, loosening the soil from about the roots, and 
placing the plants into a barrow where the roots can 
be covered over. 
Potting. —Having got a sufficient quantity raised 
and pots and compost prepared in the potting shed, 
the next operation is to get the plants trimmed into 
a neat form, the roots being also cut back a bit. One 
good crock and a few dry, clean leaves is sufficient 
in the bottom of the pots. A compost of old Chrys¬ 
anthemum soil, some new loam, a large quantity 
of sand or sandy soil—more than half—with the 
liberal addition of leaf mould and dry horse- 
droppings, properly mixed, will be found a suitable 
one. After the plants are potted they may be taken 
to the peachery stages and shelves. Frames in 
which a temperature of 56° can at all times be 
maintained together with facilities for watering and 
picking off dead leaves will also answer. The plants 
should be watered thoroughly, not a dribble given, 
but a hearty soaking, with tepid water. The house 
cannot be kept closed or any heat given,which would 
give the plants a start, but after the first watering 
no more will be required for some time. Here and 
there, one may be in need but that will be all. 
Keep the dead leaves plucked off and give them as 
much space as possible. 
Lobelias. —The dwarf edging varieties have to be 
potted up and kept for getting cuttings next spring. 
The very greatest care is required not only in the 
potting of these but in the after treatment. The 
temperature to suit best will be about 50° Fah. 
Above or below injures and endangers them. Water¬ 
ing is a very vital point, and it must be seen that 
the centres of plants are not damped unduly, or that 
moisture is not sprinkled about unnecessarily. 
Dahlias. —These in many places have been cut 
down by frost and the sooner they are lifted now the 
better for the plants. Advice on this matter has 
already been given. One main point to look to at 
first so as to save confusion, is to label the plants 
according to their colours unless they are named and 
their distinctions known. 
Carnations.—T hese can be planted out into well 
prepared beds, or better still for the plants them¬ 
selves, they can be potted up and kept in cold frames 
with some slight protection during winter. 
Wallflowers. —The plants are in fine condition 
this year and if they are planted now they will at 
once make a start. The Belvoir Castle red is a 
capital variety, which in borders should be placed at 
the back of the dwarfer and jellow variety, Golden 
Queen. A row of a yellow variety between two dark 
ones also makes an attractive show. The system of 
massing varieties of one colour denotes very good 
taste. 
Miscellaneous Work. —Sweeping and cleaning 
up leaves and all untidiness occupies some consider¬ 
able time. Walks must be repaired and lawns 
returved or this had better be left till spring unless 
the work is none too brisk. Fruits of ornamental 
Crabs still hanging out should be gathered and made 
use of. Edgings may be laid.— J. H. D. 
tub Orcliiu Brower’s calendar. 
Hybrid Cattleyas.— Raising Orchids from seed in 
this country certainly requires plenty of patience 
and care, but the pleasure derived from such tedious 
work when success at last attends your efforts amply 
repays one for the extra care and trouble bestowed 
on the tiny little chaps. 
One often hears the remark, " Oh ! what is the use 
bothering about raising Orchids from seed ; we may 
never live to see them flower.” Suppose everyone 
of the numerous raisers had said the same thing we 
should have missed seeing some of the finest things 
in cultivation, for of course the two parents being 
imported from such wide ranges it would be impos¬ 
sible for cross fertilisation by insect agency in their 
own country to take place. 
The raising of any kind of Orchids from seed is to 
be commended, but we would point out that we 
should always aim to produce something that will 
surpass those at present in commerce. One cannot 
always guarantee, though, that the hybrid will be 
exactly intermediate between the t^o parents, and 
often it is worih less than either of them. The natural 
hybrid, C. hardyana, as far as I have seen, is hardly 
a success. It would seem that C. gigas is merely 
frightened by C. aurea. Cattleya Mantinii nobilior, 
as shovn by Mr. Little and Mr. Bradshaw, at the 
last meeting of the R.H.S., is a very fine thing. C. 
aurea has put size and fire into C. bowringiana with¬ 
out reducing the number of flowers oa the scape. 
The Best Time to do the Crossing. —It has 
been suggested to us that there are with Orchids, as 
with florist's flowers, certain times in the day when 
the flowers are in a more fit state for the operation 
than others. It is quite patent to see that the bees 
work most when the sun is shining over here, so that 
it is only reasonable to infer that it is the same 
abroad ; so that if there is really nothing in it there 
is no harm in selecting a bright day for the purpose. 
Of much greater importance, however, is it to 
make sure that the flowers are in good condition ; 
flowers that are past their best very rarely take the 
cross. 
Getting the Seed to Germinate. —It is easy 
to get seeds, but it is not so easy to get them up. No 
one has tried more methods, comparatively speaking, 
than we have. They are an unruly lot, though, pop¬ 
ping up where you least expect them. Pots and 
pans, made up specially for raising the seed, have 
not been a success, but when sown on newly potted 
plants of the same species of one or both of the 
parents the result has been more satisfactory. We 
do not recommend sowing on old material, that is, on 
plants that have been potted a year, for no matter 
how careful you are to extermina'e woodlice there 
are sure to be some about, and the young seedlings 
are cleared off by them as soon as germination takes 
place. 
When the seedlings are rooting prick them off on 
to plants that have been newly pooted. If you have 
not got one ready pot one up on purpose; it will pay 
you to do so. Always water carefully, but if the 
temperature and ventilation are what they should be 
there will be no fear of their damping off. As a 
matter of fact, more die through want of moisture 
in the young state than by an excess of it.— S. C. 
