April  19,  1900. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER 
a23 
was  shown  by  Mr.  W.  Murray,  gardener  to  Norman  C.  Cookson,  Esq., 
Wylam-on-Tyne,  in  competition  for  a  special  prize  that  was  offered 
by  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  for  the  best  seedling  Orchid. 
P.  Cooksonim  (fig.  93,  page  325)  received  the  premier  award,  and  is 
particularly  handsome.  The  sepals  and  petals  are  of  a  peculiar  shade 
of  buff,  with  flushings  of  rose.  The  lip  is  superb,  being  purplish  rose 
at  the  outer  portion  and  yellow  mottled  with  brown  in  the  throat. 
Cattleya  intermedia  Fowler’s  Variety. 
At  the  meeting  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  held  in  the 
Drill  Hall  on  Tuesday,  April  10th,  an  Orchid  exhibited  by  Mr.  J. 
Davis,  gardener  to  J,  Gurney  Fowler,  Esq.,  Glebelands,  South  Wood¬ 
ford,  was  recommended  a  first-class  certificate  under  the  name  of 
Lmlio-Cattleya  intermedia  Fowler’s  variety.  This  is  favouring  the 
assumption  that  the  plant  is  a  natural  bigeneric  hybrid,  though  it  has 
hitherto  been  regarded  as  a  Brazilian  species.  Whatever  it  may  be, 
the  flower  shown  (tig.  88)  was  exceptionally  beautiful,  and  received 
warm  expressions 
of  admiration  from 
everyone.  The 
shape  of  the  flower 
is  well  depicted  in 
the  illustration. 
The  sepals  and 
petals  are  very 
delicate  rose.  The 
front  portion  of  the 
splendid  lip  is  deep 
crimson,  while  the 
side  lobes  are  soft 
primrose  and  the 
throat  blush.  It 
was  well  deserving 
of  the  honour 
accorded  to  it  by 
the  Orchid  Com¬ 
mittee. 
Dendrobium 
Leecbianum. 
As  showing  the 
variation  in  hybrid 
Orchids  this  very 
fine  plant  i-  worthy 
of  note.  It  is  of 
course  from  the 
same  parents  as  D. 
Ainsworthi,  but  it 
is  very  distinct, 
and  I  always 
consider  a  far  bet¬ 
ter  grower.  In  a 
short  time  healthy 
little  bits  make 
fine  plants  if  well 
treated.  They  are 
best  raised  from 
flowering  stems, 
and  it  these  are 
taken  off  directly 
the  blossoms  are 
past  and  laid  in 
pans  ol  moss  they 
will  be  nice  stock  ready  for  potting  separately  by  the  end  of  ihe  [ 
season. 
Much  the  finest  collection  of  plants  of  this  section — t.e.,  D.  n  bile  ! 
hybrid  — I  have  seen  were  growing  in  a  small  span-roofed  bouse  with  j 
absolutely  no  fire  hi  at  from  May  onward,  and  as  soon  as  the  majority  i 
of  tiie  stems  v  ere  well  de  eloped  the  house  was  thrown  open  all  day  | 
lor  g  and  all  shading  removed,  only  being  closed  when  danger  f  i  m 
early  frost  v  as  aiiprehended.  The  small  pieces  I  noted  above  made 
stems  from  9  inches  to  a  foot  in  length  the  first  season  after  potting, 
and  flowered  abumiantly  the  next.  This  is  a  fir  better  method  of 
propagating  than  division  of  the  plants  The  flowers  of  a  good  form 
of  D.  i.eechiaiium  (fig.  89,  page  325)  are  4  inches  across,  the  sepaF 
white  tipped,  with  purple  and  feathered  blotch  of  crimson  appear  on 
the  lip. 
Phaius  Cooksoniae. 
The  specimen  sent  by  “Young  Orchid  Grower”  represents  a  poor 
flower  of  Phaius  Cooksonise,  which  though  only  exhibited  for  the  first 
time  about  five  years  ago  is  already  comparatively  plentiful.  It  is  a 
hybrid  from  a  cross  between  P.  Hurabloti  and  P.  grandifolius,  and 
Laelia  majalis. 
This  must  certainly  be  awarded  first  place  among  the  Mexican 
species  of  the  genus,  its  large,  wide-opened  blossoms  bein^  extremely 
showy,  especially  when  a  well-flowered  specimen  is  seen.  Un- 
fortunate’y,  many  growers  still  persist  in  keeping  it  in  heat  and 
moisture  all  the  year  and  complain  as  to  its  paucity  of  flowering.  It 
is  free  enough  if  thoroughly  ripened  by  exposure  in  summer,  and  the 
only  fault  is  that  in  such  circumstances  it  is  apt  to  exhaust  itself  in  a 
few  years,  the  pseudo-bulb  being  small  when  compared  with  the 
A  native  of  immense  tracts  of  country,  it  is  naturally 
variable,  but  every 
superb  blooms. 
form 
good. 
of  it  is 
Fig.  88. — Cattleya  intermedia  Fowler’s  variety. 
Dendrobium 
Brymerianum. 
The  flowers  of 
this  delightful 
Dendrobium  vary 
considerably  in 
size,  but,  excepting 
the  almost  worth¬ 
less  D.  B.  histri- 
onicum,  all  are 
excellent  Orchids, 
the  long  flexuous 
fringe  to  the  lip 
being  a  very  at¬ 
tractive  feature, 
as  well  as  the 
bright  yellow  tint 
of  the  whole  of 
the  flower.  Under 
the  usual  treat¬ 
ment  it  blossoms 
every  season, 
though  it  cannot 
be  described  as  a 
very  floriferous 
species,  but  what  is 
lacking  inquantity 
is  more  than  com¬ 
pensated  in  beauty. 
The  roots  are 
rather  larger  than 
the  ordinary,  and 
the  compost  may 
be  rougher,  and 
the  pots  a  little 
larger  than  usual. 
Leptotes  bicolor. 
This  pretty 
species  comes  for 
identification.  It 
is  not  much  grown 
orchidists,  but  it  is 
of  the  cylindrical 
nowadays,  being  far  too  small  for  the  majority  of 
a  pleasing  plant  nevertheless.  From  the  base 
leaves  the  flower  spike  springs,  each  blossom  being  of  two  colours,  as 
ils  name  denotes — white  on  tne  outer  segments,  with  a  purple  streak 
on  the  liji.  It  is  not  a  vigorous  plant,  aud  should  be  grown  in  small 
baskets  or  on  Idocks  in  the  intermediate  house.  It  will  not  stand 
severe  drying  in  winter,  but  must  not  be  kept  too  wet,  and  it  should 
always  be  very  firmly  fixed  in  position. 
Varieties  of  Dendrobiums. 
On  more  than  one  occasion  recently  I  have  had  complaints  from 
amateur  growers  that  plants  they  have  purchased  in  flower  one  season 
do  not  come  up  to  their  proper  form  the  next.  In  some  instances 
doubth  s.s  there  is  a  reversion  from  a  good  form  to  a  poor  one,  but 
this  is  usually  in  the  case  o*  a  newly  imported  plant  being  sold  in 
flower,  as  the  next  season’s  blossoms  are  often  disappointing.  But  in 
others  the  fault  is  often  in  cultivatiof>,  and  this  is  proved  by  the  fact 
that  from  certain  parts  of  the  stem  on  D.  nobile  there  are  often  good 
flowers,  while  on  others  they  are  smaller  and  less  perfectly  formed. 
