270 
THE GARDENING WORLD . 
March 28, 1903. 
how much more beautiful than the Dendrobiums and Cattleyas, 
the flowering spiders, and blossoming lizards of the rich man’s 
hothouse. How proudly they raise their tall spikes of pale bloom, 
true sultanas of the moorland! How daintily they woo the big 
burly bumble bees! How gracefully they bend their nodding 
heads before the bold south-west wind that careers across the 
country! They seem to me always such great regal flowers, .yet 
simple with the simplicity of the untrodden upland. 
_ Grant Allen. 
In the official report? of the proceedings of St. Andrew’s Uni¬ 
versity Court on the 14th inst. intimation is made of the gift of a 
recreation park to the students by the Lord Rector, Mr. Andrew 
Carnegie. The park, of nine acres, is in the midst of the exten¬ 
sive feuing-groiind in Rathelpie belonging to the College. 
Moorland Idylls. 
Like Mr. Chamberlain, I, too, 
am an Orchid-grower. I own three 
acres (without a cow) on a Heather- 
clad hill top, and no> small pro¬ 
portion of that landed estate is 
“ down under Orchids ” ; not that 
I mean to say the species I culti¬ 
vate, or rather allow to grow wild, 
on my wild little plot would excite 
the envy of the magnate of High¬ 
bury. They are nothing more than 
common English spotted Orchids, 
springing free and spontaneous 
among the Gorse and Heather. 
But, oh! how beautiful they are! 
Copyright Messrs. Barr <fc Sons.sc» 
Galanthus Whittalli (to the left) and Ikariae (to the right) are a pair of Snowdrops 
distinguished by great breadth of leaf and) large flower, globular in form, having dark green 
markings on the outer face of the inner petals. [See page 274.) 
Saving Seed of the Tuberous-rooted 
Begonias. 
Those who have never dabbled in the hybridisation of the 
tuberous-rooted Begonia have so far missed a very interesting 
part of horticulture. 
The fertilisation of the flower, saving the seed, and watching 
the results of the seedlings, are most interesting, as well as being 
profitable. Those who raise seedlings every year from seed pur¬ 
chased from various sources very rarely get anything of note. 
The points needed to build up an ideal flower are generally con¬ 
spicuous by their absence. But lovers of the tuberous Begonias 
could, by careful hybridising, fur¬ 
nish themselves with seed which 
would not only produce excellent 
stuff for ordinary purposes, 'but a 
great percentage of high-class 
tubers worthy of naming. In the 
first place, obtain some good varie¬ 
ties at a good price from one of our 
many Begonia specialists. 
During the flowering season is the 
best time to purchase, as one has the 
advantage then of seeing the 
quality of the flower, size of bloom, 
together with substance, always 
bearing in mind that the bloom 
should be perfectly round ; that is 
to say, the side petals should be 
equal in width to the top and bot¬ 
tom—in fact, overlapping each 
other would be preferable. 
Having thus explained the type 
of bloom to select, colour should be 
the next consideration. Always 
purchase self-colours for 'the pro¬ 
pose, decided crimsons, scarlets, 
pinks, salmons, and so forth. These 
can be used to bring about novel¬ 
ties of various blends, by crossing 
and recrossing; give the plants 
liberal treatment after purchasing, 
and blooms suitable for operation 
should be plentiful during August. 
Convey the pollen by means of a 
camel-hair pencil, and after so doing 
cover the bloom with some light 
material, such as gauze-netting. 
Ibis will prevent insects conveying 
strange pollen to the blooms, which 
would upset your work. As a rule, 
when the petals fall off there is no 
fear of this mischief occurring, and 
the covering can be removed, as the 
seed pods would ripen more satisfac¬ 
torily. . 
Stand the plants in a sunny posi¬ 
tion upon an open staging, giving 
abundance of air*. As the pods 
ripen, gather and store in a closed 
tin box. jj q 
54, Shooter’s Hill Road, 
Blackheath, S.E. 
