October 14, 1905. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
tion for many years past, and send full instruc¬ 
tions as to its application. 
Seasonable Remarks. —This has been a fine 
autumn to put the final touch on late fruits of 
whatever kind, and those who have much still 
on the trees must soon get it under cover, 
especially from the open, as we cannot expect 
such grand weather to last far into October. 
Not only has it been good for ripening the 
fruit, but also killing all weeds where the fiat 
hoe- has been in use. See that all nets are 
thoroughly dry before gathering up, and put 
away until spring. Walnuts must now be got 
in and allowed to dry a bit, when they can be 
beaten with sticks should the outer skin fail to 
part easily ; these may be kept in a similar way 
as advocated for filberts a fortnight since. 
Indoors. 
The principal work here is the renovation of 
borders, as regards the Grape Vine that has 
been relieved of its crop of fruit and is con¬ 
sidered unsatisfactory at the root, and the root 
pruning of the Peach, Apricot, Fig, or Cherry 
that are planted in borders, details of which 
were given in a previous issue. Late varieties 
of Grapes ought to be ripe by now, although the 
finishing, that is the sweetening, of the berries, 
will still go on for a week or two yet. Make 
use of as little fire heat as possible on bright 
days, and afford ample ventilation so that high 
temperatures are not the order. To keep 
Muscat of Alexandria in good condition during 
the next six or eight weeks will require much 
care and forethought, no unnecessary water 
must be spilt about the house or the night 
temperature to fall too low, or the berries will 
soon decay, but maintain a gentle heat in the 
hot-water pipes so that the thermometer 
registers 55 to 60 deg. at 6.30 a.m. Admit but 
little ventilation during wet or foggy days in 
houses that contain ripe Grapes, and examine 
the bunches every few days in case a decaying 
berry may present itself. 
Structures to be used for fruiting early pot 
Vines should undergo a thorough cleansing, by 
washing all glass and woodwork .after the 
removal of any fermenting material that may 
still be left in the bed, the walls lime-washed, 
md a good heap of freshly fallen leaves thrown 
together as soon as they can be procured, 
idding some straw litter if leaves of the Oak, 
Beech, or Sweet Chestnut are scarce, the whole 
;o be moved back a few times so that rank heat 
may escape by the time it will be required next 
month. The last crop of Melons ought to be 
hear ripening by now, as the sun gradually 
| essens its power, and fruit ripened without 
much sun are deficient in flavour. Lessen the 
i water supply considerably at the root, also over- 
lead, as ripeness approaches, and afford a 
I moderate amount of ventilation by day when 
ine, but avoid any at night now the outside 
hemperatare is reading low, with the wind in 
-he north. Taken all through this has been an 
deal summer for Melons, which are in much 
greater demand during tropical weather, but a 
veil-ripened fruit looks well on the dinner table 
o late even as the end of October. 
James Mayne. 
Bicton Gardens, Devonshire. 
liberally until the autumn. The creeping 
rhizomes may now be lifted and potted up, 
several in a 6-inch pot, and placed in cold 
frames until wanted for forcing. By intro¬ 
ducing a few plants at a time there need be no 
difficulty in maintaining an unbroken supply 
of fresh-looking plants throughout the winter 
and early spring. 
Lily of the Galley. —This is another popu¬ 
lar flowering plant that should be grown in 
quantity at home, so that some may be lifted 
annually for forcing. If liberal treatment is 
accorded them in the open for two or three 
years after forcing there will be no lack of fine 
flowering crowns, and the best may be readily 
picked out and potted, eight crowns in a 
---^ 
OUR WEEKLY PRIZE COM¬ 
PETITIONS. 
General Conditions. — Competitors must 
write on one side of the paper only. Regular paid 
contributors to The Gardening World, or other 
gardening journals, are debarred from entering, 
but occasional contributors may compete. The 
name and address of the competitor must appear 
on each article sent for competition. The Editor’s 
decision is final, and he reserves the right to re¬ 
produce, in any way, any article or photograph 
sent for competition. The conditions applying to 
each competition should be carefully read. 
PRIZES. 
A Prize of Ten Shillings will be given for 
the best paragraph or short article on any 
gardening subject, such as hints of practical 
interest to gardeners, notes on the propagation or 
cultivation of flowers, fruits or vegetables, 
eradication of pests, etc. The paragraph or 
article must not exceed a column, but value 
rather than length will he considered in making 
the award. Mark envelopes “ Competition,” and 
post not later than the Monday following date of 
issue. Entries received later than Tuesday 
first post will be left over until the following 
week. 
Two Prizes of Two Shillings and Six¬ 
pence each will be given for the best supple¬ 
mentary replies to questions asked in “ The G.W. 
Enquire Within ” column. These replies should 
be brief. 
A Prize of Five Shillings will he given for 
the best novel device for saving labour, protecting 
plants, or a garden utensil, which reaches us 
during any week. A rough sketch must accom¬ 
pany the brief description. 
RESULTS OF LAST WEEK'S COM¬ 
PETITIONS. 
The prize in the Readers’ Competition was 
awarded to “ H. Arnold,” for his article on “ The 
Wild Garden,” p. 781. 
A prize for a supplementary reply was awarded 
to “ Dunn,” for his article on “ Bellflowers for the 
Border” ; and another to “ B. E. G. Bowyer,” for 
an article on “ Perennials for Cut Flowers,” p. 7SS. 
A prize was also awarded to “ Henry H. 
Gibson,” for a device, “ Tool for making Drills,” 
p. 789. 
v_____ 
The Stove and Greenhouse. 
Polygonatum multiflorum.-Known in the 
i ernacular as “Solomon’s Seal,” this hardy 
lant should be forced in quantity, for apart 
-om the beauty of its wax-like flowers, which 
i e P end gracefully from its arching steins, the 
right green leafage is pleasing and unsurpassed 
or cutting purposes. Large quantities are 
mported annually, and they are inexpensive, 
ut the plant is easily grown at home if trans- 
lanted in spring, after a rest, and grown on 
48-sized pot, or the clumps may be placed as 
lifted into shallow 7 boxes and introduced into 
heat as required. To ensure large spikes of 
bells at Christmas, the Berlin crowns should 
be purchased and potted up at once. It should 
be remembered that very few new roots will be 
produced during the process of forcing ; there¬ 
fore do not use large pots, or the soil in them 
becomes wet and sour. Plunge the pots in 
cocoa-fibre in a stroug heat and completely 
cover the crowns. Care must be taken that 
these are not buried. 
79 j 
Hyacinths.—Assuming that the bulbs of 
the Romans and others, potted up a few weeks 
ago for early flowering, have commenced to 
grow, they may be introduced to a genial 
warmth as required. The main batch to form 
a succession may now be potted and plunged 
in fibre in a cold frame. The culture of named 
varieties in glasses of water is interesting, and 
with some attention to details gives excellent 
results. Nearly fill the glasses with rain-water 
and place therein a few nodules of charcoal. 
The base of the bulb should lie just above the 
water’s surface, and this should be replenished 
as it evaporates. Place in a dark, cool cup¬ 
board until roots are formed, together with top 
growth, then remove to a light, warm room. 
K. M. 
Orchids for Amateurs. 
Cypripedium fairieanum and its hybrids. 
—The reintroduction of this species, or as 
writers in the public press have styled it, “ the 
reintroduction of the lost Orchid,” is certainly 
one of the greatest advantages that has been 
obtained, from a cultivator’s point of view, for 
some years. It was first brought under notice 
in 1857, when flowers w 7 ere sent to Sir IV. .J. 
Hooker, at Kew, from Mr. Reid, of Burnham, 
Somerset, and from the nursery of Mr. Parker, 
at Upper Holloway. In October of the same 
year Mr. Fairie, of Aigburth, Liverpool, exhi¬ 
bited a plant in London, to whom L)r. Lindley 
dedicated the species, which was described in 
“ The Gardeners’ Chronicle ” shortly afterwards. 
The w 7 hole of these plants are believed to have 
been obtained at an auction sale in Stevens’ 
Rooms of East Indian Orchids. The habitat 
of the plant has been lost until within the last 
few months, wdien it has been again introduced 
to our gardens in an imported state. 
At one time it was fairly plentiful, but of late 
years it has become practically extinct to culti¬ 
vation, certainly not more than a half-dozen 
plants remaining. "While obtainable, it proved 
to be one of the most useful plants for hybridi¬ 
sation purposes we have ever had. There is 
not a single instance in v 7 hich it was used but 
that resulted in desirable additions, and they 
have, since the species has been so scarce, 
been greatly sought after and highly prized. 
Now that it has been re-introduced, only in 
limited quantities at present, I have no doubt 
in the near future it will appear in greater 
quantities, w’hich will place the plant within 
reach of all. Its quaint characteristics and 
remarkable coloured veinings render it most 
charming, and as there is to-day a greater field 
for operation in the choice of suitable kinds for 
fertilising, it will be a subject of attraction to 
hybridists for some years to come. 
It will be found that the conditions under 
which C. insigne is found to thrive best will 
also suit the requirements of C. fairieanum. 
The plants in my charge we have had for some 
months, and they are now iu flow 7 er, are in pots 
filled to one-third their depth with clean 
broken crocks, the remaining space being filled 
in with a compost consisting of peat, fibrous 
loam and chopped sphagnum moss in about 
equal portions. The plants have rooted freely 
into this compost, and the growth they are 
making is most remarkable. There is not a 
great variation among the plants I have seen, 
some having darker markings and more heavily 
tessellated veinings than others, and in some 
cases the flow 7 ers are larger than others ; but 
perhaps this may be only a matter of vigour, 
udiich may rectify itself after the plants have 
become established. 
As above mentioned, the hybrids are very 
desirable subjects for the attention of the 
amateur. In some cases, such as C. arthuri- 
anum (insigne and fairieanum) and C. Nio 
