May 21, 1904. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
429 
Round the Nurseries. 
Messrs. Wm. Bull and Sons. 
The other week we paid a visit to the nursery of Messrs, 
fiu. Bull and Sons, King’s Road, Chelsea, and found that they 
ad rebuilt some of their Orchid houses. The cool Odonto- 
lossum house has been rebuilt and arranged on modern prin- 
iples. The side stages are double, with about 1 ft. of space 
etween the two. The lower one consists of pantiles covered 
ith shingle to hold moisture. This is supported by stanchions 
f iron. Some pans of water are set on the lower stages, and 
n these inverted pots have been placed, and the top shelves 
■upported on the pots. These pans of water prevent slugs 
rom getting to the plants on the top staging. The side ven- 
ilators are so placed that a cool current of air passes under- 
leath and up between the plants, as the top shelves are con¬ 
structed of narrow planks with spaces between them. Under- 
leath the central staging is a, large tank in three sections, run- 
hug the whole length of the house, and 9 ft. deep. It is made 
jf concrete, cemented, and is tilled with rain-water, which it 
is constructed to catch. 
Irchids. 
Odontcglossums are veiy numerous in this house, and 
amongst them we noted some beautiful round flowers of 0. 
orispum. The spots in one instance were circular and distri¬ 
buted over all parts of the flower." Another was a beautiful 
white flower of great substance and good form. A fine variety 
is that named 0. c. chelsiense. Of this species a large quantity 
recently imported is being established, and those now showing 
flowers are very promising. 
Many other well-known forms are also in bloom, including 0. 
audersoniauum, with a. yellow ground, 0. gloMosum, 0. 
triumphans, and 0. Pescatorei. Some tine varieties were 
noticeable amongst the latter, including an unusually huge 
flower tinted with lose, on a white ground. Another was not¬ 
able for the rich purple border surrounding the basal Lobes of 
the lip. 0. Adrianae, 0. caudatum, and 0. luteo-purpureum 
also included some beautiful varieties. One of the last named 
was notable for carrying three spikes all from the base of one 
pseudo-bulb, this being very unusual. We usually expect one 
of the spikes to proceed from the top of the pseudo-bulb. 
In this same house were several other Orchids that delight 
m a cool atmosphere, including Cymbidium lowianum in quan¬ 
tity, some of the varieties being very good, as measured by 
the rich velvety-brown blotch at the apex of the lip. In C. 
1. con col or this blotch and the other brown tints have been 
, entirely washed out. The beautiful Oncidiuni curium was 
on the point of expanding its blossoms. Maxillaria sauderiana 
had pushed its flower spike through the bottom of the basket, 
in this respect, reminding one of a Stanhopea. 
In a cool end of ibis house a fine batch of Miltonia, veixillaria 
is preparing to* bloom, the flower spikes being very numerous, 
each carrying four to six blooms on a, spike. The collection 
includes some very fine varieties, such as M. v. Leopoldii, M. v. 
insignia, M. v. rubella, M. v. grandiflora, M. v. cobbiana,, and 
M. v. chelsiensis. The foliage of M. v. cobbiana is richly tinted 
ruth purple. M. v. chelsiensis has deeply-veaned flowers and 
looms very late. Near by was Lycaste Skinneri in consider¬ 
able variety, including the beautiful L. S. alba, 
• f 1 j 61 '“ V 6xde: psive collection of Cypripediums fills one house 
including species, varieties, and hybrids. A large batch of C 
awrenceanum, nofable for the beauty of its foliage, was in full 
oom. Here we noted C. barbatum Warremi, with a purple* 
S ia ^, e J °4ch on the dorsal sepal. A seed-pod was developing 
on the same stalk as the fully-expanded flower. Another tint 
lauety °t the same species was C. b. grandiflorum, with a 
i 1S W e J ,0Ut ’h' Others in. bloom in this house 
netal V^T’ .' Le . 1 D , oux ’ C ’" oandidulum, and C. grande, with 
conddin U1 ^ bue ba,tcb t-. ai'thurianum in healthi 
5iam m t ft 7 be 1 l°' ted in this bouse ’- Oncidiuni krame- 
q ™,;, d four s P kes <*» plant-* very unusual number 
’Th?r m t JUS suspended in Pans was also* flowering, 
tfle Uttleya house is well furnished with all the populai 
types, and some of the less common ones. The earlier ones 
are in bloom, including C. Sohroderae, amongst which we noted 
some very dark varieties. Very handsome was C. scbilleriana, 
with brown sepals and petals spotted with purple, thus con¬ 
trasting with the bright purple white-edged and widely-ex¬ 
panded lip. C. Skinneri included some beautiful dark 
varieties. C. Mendelii had also commenced to bloom, while 
large numbers of C. Mossiae are in sheath. Some of the more 
precocious of them were in bloom. 
The Cymbidium house has also been completely rebuilt, as 
far as woodwork and staging are concerned. It, lias just been 
tilled with the plants intended to be grown in it, and these 
consist chiefly of Cymbidiums and allied plants, some of them 
having commenced to throw up their flower spikes. In another 
Xanthoceras SORBIFOLIA. (See p. f’23.) 
division of this house a large quantity of Laelia purpurata is 
located. Very handsome was Dendrobium nobile nobilius, 
with its large, richly-coloured flowers. D. wardianum album 
lias all the colour washed out of it except the yellow base of 
the lip and two maroon blotches. In a large lean-to house 
we came upon the pure white Coelogyne cristafa, alba making 
its growth. 
One bouse is almost entirdy devoted to Masdevallias, the 
collection being very rich. Many of them are so handsome 
and the plants so neat that we are surprised so little attention 
is given to this class of plants by growers generally. There 
are a few private places in which adequate attention is given 
to the many members of the genus, but we should like to see 
