578 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
August 31, 1907. 
time to recuperate before the winter. First 
cut away all old and yellow fronds, and 
especially those which show traces of red 
spider ; where the Hatter pest has been preva¬ 
lent much good may be done by slightly 
damping the foliage with a syringe and 
dusting on flowers of sulphur immediately. 
All sour and stagnant soil should be cleared 
from the roots, and if the latter are in a 
bad way wash the roots well in water and 
out away decayed portions. Then repot into 
the same sized pot, using a compost of 
fibrous loam two parts, decayed and 
dried manure or leaf mould one part, and 
one part of very coarse sand or sweepings 
from a gravel walk. Shade from sun, and 
syringe -twice daily, following this up with 
careful watering. 
Wasps and Grapes. 
The wet and cold weather has driven 
wasps indoors in unusual numbers, and 
already they have commenced to exact a toll 
from the ripe Black Hamburghs and Fos¬ 
ters’ Seedlings. Loose muslin bags, drawn 
together round the stem of the bunch -by a 
string at the top, are the best protectors, and 
do not take long to make, provided the lady 
help is forthcoming. Where bags are 
tabooed, wide mouthed bottles or glass jars 
may be partly filled with beer and sugar 
and hung about the vinery. These will 
attract and destroy many of the pests. 
Chrysanthemums. 
A useful hint at this season is to water all 
the 'Chrysanthemums which need, or are 
likely to need, liquid refreshment, in the 
morning. By watering in the evening the 
soil remains wet all night, and this condi¬ 
tion conduces to greenness of -the wood and 
prevents ripening, and without properly 
ripened stems flowers will be few and poor 
in quality. Earwigs are a terror at this 
season, but may -be easily caught if hunted 
for with a bicycle lamp at night. If bamboo 
stakes are used-, thrust a wire skewer from 
the kitchen down the top of each one every 
morning; many earwigs will be transfixed 
in this way. 
Potting: Primulas. 
Chinese Primulas are more accommo¬ 
dating in their demands for more pot rcom 
than are many plants, but, all the same, 
their endurance in this respect should not 
he tried too much. -Most of the plants 
should now be ready for their flowering 
pots, and I do not think these need be larger 
than the 5in. size. A few 6in. pots are 
handy on occasion, but unless really strong 
plants are available for their filling there 
is great danger of over-watering them later. 
The potting compost should contain plenty 
of sand and fine, flaky leafmould, and it 
should be made fairly firm. Keep the 
plants elevated on a slight mound in the 
middle of the pot, and then danger of rot¬ 
ting at the collar will 'be reduced to a mini¬ 
mum. The plants may remain in a shady 
frame for the present. 
Schizanthus wisetonensis. 
There is still time to sow seeds of this 
most beautiful greenhouse plant, and I 
would strongly ad-vise all readers to do so. 
Very little heat is required to winter the 
young plants, provided care is exercised in 
watering, and certainly there is nothing in 
the greenhouse that can compare in late 
spring or early summer with a well-grown 
specimen of this Schizanthus. Use a well- 
drained pan for -the seeds, sow thinly, and 
prick off the seedlings before - they crowd 
each other. It is permissible to grow three 
plants in a 6in. pot, and- preparations should 
be made to this end. 
“ SuNNYSIDE.” 
Orchids for Amateurs. 
Odontoglossums. 
Importations of Odontoglossum crispum 
reach this country at practically all seasons 
of the year, as the numerous advertisements 
will testify. There was a time when certain 
seasons were considered desirable, but of 
late years we find that imported plants make 
equally satisfactory progress, providing they 
are protected from severe frosts in winter. 
If there is a season at which I would prefer 
receiving imported plants I certainly think 
the present the best. The cooler and more 
moisture laden atmosphere of the next few 
weeks enables the shrivelled pseudo-bulbs to 
regain their normal state more readily un¬ 
der these conditions, than is found to be the 
case with -plants that are subjected imme¬ 
diately on arrival to the drying atmosphere 
of the late spring or summer; also they 
escape the artificial heat which has to be ap¬ 
plied to keep the desired temperatures of 
the e-arlly spring and winter. Imported 
plants must to some extent gain their nor¬ 
mal plump state before starting into growth, 
or we obtain the weak and sickly breaks 
from which only small progress is made, and 
it thus defers the flowering of the plant for 
at least a season. 
Now I don’t want to convey for a moment 
that anything but ordinary treatment is ne¬ 
cessary to assist the -bulbs to regain their 
normal state. We always pot up our plants 
immediately they reach us, and thus every 
plant is treated according to its require¬ 
ments in respect to applying moisture about 
the pseudo-bulbs, but in every other respect 
they receive the same conditions as do the 
established plants. I think this the best 
method for those who have only to deal with 
a small number of plants. Where plants 
are grown from the imported state in thou¬ 
sands I have no hesitation in saying that 
the system of planting out in well-drained 
beds of peat and Sphagnum moss, where they 
may remain until root action from the ad¬ 
vancing growth renders them in a suitab’e 
state to be transferred to pots, is to be 
recommended. 
Treatment of Plants as Received. 
In the first place carefully remove all 
dead and decaying matter from about the 
pseudo-bulbs. When this -has been done 
select pots, just sufficiently large to contain 
the plants comfortably ; only a small propor¬ 
tion of patting compost is necessary. The 
pots used should be clean and filled toabou-t 
two-thirds their depth with drainage. This 
may be either broken pot-sherds or chopped 
bracken Fern roots. Where the latter is 
used care must be observed to see that all 
sappy matter is dried out of the roots before 
they are used as drainage, or they will aid 
the growth of fungus, which soon permeates 
the whole of the potting compost. It is de¬ 
sirable always to have the bracken roots in 
stock for a few months, until they are re¬ 
quired for use. Where bracken is used as 
drainage a piece of crock should be placed 
over the hole at the base ; this also helps to 
retard the progress of fungoid attacks. The 
potting compost may consist of about equal 
portions of fibrous peat, chopped sufficiently 
small to suit the sizes of the pots used, an 
chopped living Sphagnum moss. We us 
some partly decayed Oak and Beech leav< 
intermixed with the potting compost, bi 
some little knowledge is desirable as to tb 
treatment of plants where leaves are ii 
eluded in the compost; therefore I would ac 
vise amateurs to use only peat and mos: 
This compost should -be pressed moderatel 
firm about the plants, but care should b 
taken to see that the living but perhaps doj 
mant eyes rest slightly above the suxfac 
of the potting compost. When potting j 
completed, water with rain water, wettin 
the compost through. Stage in a portion c 
the house where the plants may be shade 
from too much light, and the atmosphei 
should be kept in a humid state about then 
The temperature of from 50 to 55 degree 
should be retained. 
H. J. Chapman. 
-- 
— The — 
Aphis Brush. 
All growers of Roses are acquaint 
with the pest green fly, or aphis. W 
read about many methods of extermina 
tion, of many formulae for insecticides 
the most common being an infusion 0 
quassia chips with some soft soap added 
and possibly a trifle of carbolic acid, 
have tried this with a syringe, and mus 
confess that the result was not satisfac 
tory. Possibly I did not persevere suffi 
ciently. At all events, I abandoned th 
syringe, and went round with a basil 
full of insecticide and a sash tool (smal 
painter’s brush), and swept each tre- 
clean. This kept down the intruders fo 
a time, but required doing at least twic 
a week. We read about the finger am 
thumb being the best thing, and so or! 
but to my mind nothing equals the aphi 
brush, an illustration of which is give) 
herewith. 
This consists of two soft Brushes, ; 
little larger than tooth brushes, mountei 
on a spring handle. The modus operand 
is to take the brush and dip it in som 
tobacco powder, then get the infectet 
part or shoot of the Rose tree betweei 
the brushes, press the brushes gently to 
gether, and draw them upwards to th' 
point of the shoot. The result will be t< 
see the shoot cleansed from the aphi 
and a deposit of tobacco powder left be 
hind. I have only about 200 Rose trees 
but I find that going over them abou 
once a fortnight is quite sufficient t< 
keep them free from blight. The tobacco 
deposit also, assists in keeping away ear 
wigs, which may play sad havoc witl 
blooms and buds. Brushes may be ob 
tained from most nurserymen. 
