January  18, ’'1900.; 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
45 
CypRiPEDiuM  Sir^^Redvers  Buller. 
The  patriotic  martial  spirit  that  pervades  members  of  the  British 
Empire  in  all  parts  of  the  world  has  made  its  presence  felt  in  the 
essentially  peaceful  circles  of  horticulture.  On  every  hand  we  find  new 
forms  being  named  after  our  leaders  in  South  Africa,  and  amongst  the 
latest  examples  we  may  cite  Cypripedium  Sir  Redvers  Buller  (fig.  9). 
This  magnificent  hybrid  was  exhibited  at  the  meeting  of  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Society,  held  in  the  Drill  Hall  on  January  9th,  and  was 
recommended  for  a  first-class  certificate  by  the  Orchid  Committee. 
The  parentage  of  this  Cypripedium  was  given  as  C.  Smithi  and 
C.  insigne.  The  dorsal  sepal  is  superb. 
The  central  colour  is  bright  green, 
with  prominent  lines  of  chocolate-  V 
brown  spots.  The  margin  is  white,  % 
flushed  with  rose.  The  petals  are  1%  \ 
pale  claret,  with  large  varnished  brown 
spots.  The  pouch  is  reddish  claret.  , 
The  exhibitor  of  this  Cypripedium  •  t  * 
was  Mr.  W.  M.  Appleton,  Weston-  * 
super-Mare. 
* » 
Cypripedium  Sedeni  porphyredm. 
The  typical  G.  Sedeni — if  such  a 
term  is  allowable  in  this  case — is 
a  very  fine  garden  Orchid,  but  this 
variety  is  a  great  improvement  on  it. 
It  bears  the  same  relation  to  it  in  a 
way  that  C.  aurea  does  to  C.  Dowiana, 
and  it  is  capable  of  keeping  up  a 
longer  display  than  any  other  kind. 
For  months  on  end  the  spikes  con¬ 
tinue  to  produce  flowers,  and  these 
are  finer  in  colour  than  those  of 
C.  Sedeni.  This  is  a  hybrid  that 
will  continue  to  be  grown  as  a  good 
garden  plant,  ni  matter  what  becomes 
of  some  of  the 
expensive  rarities 
that  just  now 
are  fashion’s  pets, 
simply  owing  to 
its  intrinsic 
value  as  an 
easily  grown, free- 
flowering.  and 
beautiful  garden 
plant. 
L.ELIA  SUPERBIENS 
Small  speci¬ 
mens  do  not 
show  the  beauty 
of  this  grand 
Laelia,  which  is 
certainly  worthy 
of  the  attention 
of  all  who  have 
a  suitable  struc¬ 
ture  for  its  cul¬ 
ture.  To  grow 
the  largest  plants 
a  large  house  is’  necessary,  but  a  fine  plant  of  it  now  flowering 
does  remarkably  ^well  in  a  fernery.  The  pots  must  bo  large 
•enough  to  take  the  plants  quite  easily  and  allow  room  for  exten¬ 
sion,  and  the  compost  ought  to  be  rough  and  open,  containing  large 
lumps  of  burnt  clay  or  charcoal  mixed  with  peat  fibre  and  clean 
sphagnum  moss. 
Growers  who  have  had  to  deal  with  imported  plants  know  that 
these  are  often  difficult  to  get  into  shape,  and  with  L.  superbiens  the 
difficulty  is  greater  than  with  most  kinds,  for  the  rhizomes  are  very 
stiff,  and  the  pseudo-bulbs  large  and  stubborn  to  bend.  Often  it  is 
necessary  to  cut  almost  through  the  rhizome'i;  and  incidentally  it  may 
be  mentioned  that  this  cutting,  instead  of  injuring  the  plant  in  any 
way,  does  it  good,  by  causing  it  to  break  into  fresh  growth  at  places 
that  were  previously  bare,  and  by ,  these  means  makes  a  more 
regularly  furnished  plant.  By  pulling  down  with  wire  or  stout  cord 
I  the  specimens  can  be  shaped  a  little,  and  the  next  time  they  are 
j  potted  they  may  be  still  further  improved  by  setting  some  part  higher 
I  or  lower  as  the  case  demands. 
j  As  to  temperature  one  slightly  below  that  of  the  Cattleya  house  is 
best,  but  the  plants  will  do  very  well  with  the  Cattleyas  if  no  inter¬ 
mediate  house  is  at  command.  The  young  growths  when  forming  are 
usually  covered  with  a  gummy  exudation  that  is  evidently  intended 
as  a  protection  against  crawling  insects.  Unless  this  is  very  plentiful 
no  harm  is  done  by  it,  but  I  have  known  cases  where  it  envelopes 
the  young  bud  so  closely  as  to  hinder  its  proper  swelling,  and  then 
j  it  is  advisable  to  sponge  it  off. 
The  flower  spike  is  erect  from  the  centre  of  the  growth,  and  bears 
j  upon  the  apex  a  cluster  of  pretty  flowers.  They  are  of  various  tints 
j  of  rose,  and  altogether  remind  one  of  a  large  and  well  coloured 
Schomburkia.  L.  superbiens  is  one  of  the  discoveries  of  Mr.  G.  Ure 
Skinner,  who  is  said  to  have  first  seen  it  in  a  state  of  semi-cultivation 
by  natives  in  Guatemala.  These  call  it  the  Wand  of  St.  Joseph,  and 
it  is  said  to  grow  in  great  luxuriance  in 
sheltered  places,  often  with  flower  spikes 
12  feet  in  length.  They  never  attain  this 
size  under  cultivation. 
Fig.  9. — Cypripedium  Sir  Redvers  Buller. 
Mr.  Thorne’s  Treatment  of  Orchids. 
As  I  expected,  Mr.  Thorne  has  set  up 
no  out-of-the-way  theories  with  regard  to 
his  success  with  Orchids  difficult  to  grow, 
and  I  would  like  to  add  my  commendation 
to  that  of  the  Editor  on  page  16.  Those 
who  have  seen  the  plants  frequently  exhi¬ 
bited  at  the  R.H.S.  meetings  by  this  very 
successful  grower  must  have  been  struck  by 
their  singularly  healthy  appearance,  and  will 
be  glad  to  note  the  simple  and  observant 
methods  that  have  led  to  such  excellent 
results. 
Dendrobium  crassinode  Berberianum. 
&The  new  year  brings  us  many  bright 
and  beautiful  Orchids,  but  none  more  so 
than  the  early  flowering  section  of  deciduous 
Dendrobiums.  This,  it  is  true,  is  not  yet 
in  bloom,  but 
the  fast-swelling 
nodes  tell  of 
bright  things  to 
come  in  the  near 
future,  and  the 
interest  of  watch¬ 
ing  the  flowers 
as  they  develop 
is  great.  The 
variety  named 
above  is  not 
nearly  as  com¬ 
mon  as  many 
people  imagine, 
and  it  is  the 
custom  of  some 
dealers  to  mark 
any  fairly  good 
form  Berberi¬ 
anum,  When  a 
true  stock  of 
this  Orchid  is 
secured  it  will 
be  found  to  bo 
one  of  the  finest 
of  the  spring¬ 
flowering  plants,  the  bright  magenta  crimson  of  the  tips  of  the 
segments  carried  well  down,  and  contrasting  strongly  with  the  yellow 
on  the  lip. 
It  is  not  happy  in  a  large  receptacle  of  any  kind,  preferring  small 
baskets  or  pans,  where  the  roots  reach  the  sides  easily.  The  type 
and  the  variety  are  both  apt  to  suffer  from  decay  of  the  lower  parts 
of  the  stems,  and  this  is  always  worse  when  they  are  growing  in 
large  pots.  As  a  companion  plant  to  D.  c.  Berberianum,  D.  c.  album 
may  be  grown,  as  the  white  and  bright  red  forms  look  remarkably 
well  together,  and  one  helps  to  show  up  the  other.  The  cultural 
details  are  the  same  as  have  frequently  been  described  for  other 
deciduous  kinds,  the  most  important  points  being  a  quick  season  of 
growth,  thorough  ripening  of  the  growths,  and  subsequently  a  proper 
season  of  rest. — H.  R.  R. 
