96 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  CQTTAQE  GARDENER. 
February  4,  1897 
Calanthes  Yeitchi  AND  VESTITA. 
It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  the  above  Calanthes  are  not 
nearly  so  well  grown  as  they  were  some  few  years  back,  not  that  it 
is  altogether  lack  of  knowledge  of  their  cultural  requirements,  but 
the  numerous  hybrids  and  importations  so  frequently  appearing  seem 
to  have  relegated  these  beautiful  and  useful  winter-flowering  Orchids 
to  a  much  lower  position  than  they  deserve.  Yet  the  fact  must 
not  be  overlooked  that  either  as  cut  flowers  or  for  decorative 
purposes  in  pots  we  haTe  few  modern  Orchids  that  are  so  accom¬ 
modating,  the  length  of  stem  when  cut  beiDg  of  great  service, 
whilst  for  grouping  they  can  be  so  arranged  as  to  present  the  most 
graceful  appearance,  the  lasting  properties  of  the  flower  spikes  being 
a  great  feature  in  their  support.  The  variety  Veitchi  is  certainly 
the  more  valuable,  and  if  the  late  Mr.  Dominy  did  no  more  than 
raise  this  one  variety  it  was  sufficient  to  keep  his  name  perpetuated. 
Having  had  for  some  years  past  to  keep  up  a  large  supply  for 
various  purposes  I  am  sending  a  few  notes  on  their  culture,  also 
some  spikes  from  plants  which  have  not  been  repotted  for  three 
years.  They  are  not  of  the  best,  yet  you  will  see  how  bright  and 
'  useful  they  are  at  this  dull  season. 
After  the  plants  have  finished  blooming  they  may  be  kept  on 
the  dry  side  until  the  new  growths  are  seen  to  be  moving.  Many 
growers  let  them  start  in  the  old  compost,  and  with  careful 
watering,  or  if  they  are  to  be  grown  in  it  a  second  season,  it  is 
all  well  and  good,  but  ours  are  shaken  out  of  the  pots  and  laid  in  a 
box  of  charcoal  and  sphagnum,  into  which  they  soon  begin  to  make 
new  roots,  and  when  ready  for  potting  they  lift  much  easier  and 
have  a  portion  adhering  to  the  roots,  no  check  being  experienced. 
The  cultivator  must  determine  on  the  size  of  pots  suitable  to  his 
requirements  ;  the  largest  sized  pseudo-bulbs  may  be  placed  singly 
in  5-iuch  pots,  7-inch  for  three,  and  9-inch  for  six  bulbs.  The  pots 
must  be  carefully  drained. 
The  compost  we  use  is  composed  of  tw?  parts  fibry  loam,  one 
peat,  with  the  remaining  part  coarRe  silver  sand  and  dried  horse 
droppings.  The  latter  I  use  in  preference  to  cow  manure,  as  being 
sweeter  and  less  liable  to  get  sour.  Some  rough  pieces  are  placed 
over  the  drainage,  and  fill  up  level  to  the  rim.  A  small  stake  is 
placed  against  each  pseudo-bulb  to  keep  them  in  position  until 
they  have  taken  hold  of  the  soil,  when  they  may  be  filled  up  to  the 
rim  of  the  pot  with  the  same  compost. 
After  repotting  a  moist  growing  temperature  of  from  65°  to 
75°  will  suit  them  to  a  nicety,  watering  most  carefully  at  first, 
gradually  increasing  the  supply  as  the  summer  advances,  giving 
weak  guano  water  about  twice  a  week,  and  shading  from  hot 
sunshine.  When  the  flower  spikes  can  be  detected  at  the  base  of 
the  pseudo-bulbs  less  water  will  be  needed,  and  if  when  in  flower 
the  plants  can  be  arranged  in  the  midst  of  a  bank  of  Maidenhair 
Fern  and  Asparagus  the  effect  is  greatly  enhanced.  If  a  larger 
stock  is  required  break  the  pseudo- bulbs  at  a  joint,  and  lay  them 
on  some  sphagnum  moss,  when  growths  will  be  the  result  in  almost 
every  instance. 
To  Bum  up,  success  is  only  to  be  obtained  by  moderate  watering 
after  repotting,  heat  and  moisture,  with  shade  from  strong  sunshine 
during  the  summer,  weak  applications  of  liquid  manure,  which 
helps  to  consolidate  the  pseudo-bulbs,  and  growing  from  start  to 
finish  without  a  check. — R.  P.  R. 
[Our  correspondent  ha*  taken  an  excellent  means  of  proving  the 
correctness  of  his  methods  of  procedure  by  forwarding  *pecimens 
of  the  flowers,  the  cultural  details  of  which  he  treats  so  well  in  the 
preceding  paragraphs.  The  spikes  are  of  good  length,  the  flowers 
even  and  closely  distributed  on  them,  aDd  what  is  more  advan¬ 
tageous  all  on  one  side,  thus  allowing  each  to  be  seen  readily. 
Though  the  notes  above  deal  with  C.  Yeitchi  and  C.  vestita  only, 
there  are  many  others  of  great  utilifrv — namely,  C.  porphyrea, 
C.  rosea,  C  Limatodes  rosea,  C.  Veitchi  lactea,  and  C.  sanguinaria, 
each  of  which  is  represented  in  the  engraving  (fig.  24)  ] 
Orchid  Sales. 
Week  by  week  and  month  by  month  bring  in  their  train  that 
imtitution  of  a  comparatively  recent  growth  —  the  Orchid  sale. 
One  may  always  purcba«e  Orchids  at  the  sale  rooms  of  Messrs. 
Protheroe  &  Morris  in  Cheapside.  Not  a  lot  of  rubbish,  but  good 
plants  from  sound  and  reliable  sources.  On  Friday  last  Mesirs. 
Sander  &  Co.,  St.  Albans,  had  sent  a  large  consignment  of  Orchids 
in  and  out  of  pots,  though,  owing  to  the  weather,  nothing  of 
startling  merit  was  noticeable.  Buyers  were  not  particularly 
numerous,  but  the  plants  were  rapidly  taken  up.  On  Friday, 
February  5th,  there  will  be  another  Orchid  sale,  the  specimens  this 
time  coming  from  Messrs.  W.  L.  Lewis  &  Co.  and  J.  W.  Moore, 
and  comprise  numerous  lots  of  Cypripediums  and  Odontoglossums. 
A  GARDEN  IN  THE  ISLE  OF  WIGHT. 
[An  Address  (amplified)  by  Rev.  H.  Ewbank  to  the  members  of  the 
Horticultural  Association  at  Newport.] 
(Continued  from  page  71.) 
Speaking  of  winter  flowers,  by  which  I  mean  those  that  blossom  in 
the  dead  time  of  the  year — long  before  Helleborus  colchicus  has  put  in 
any  appearance,  and  running  a  race  with  H.  niger  itself — I  know  of 
nothing  which  more  astonishes  a  beholder  for  the  first  time  than  some 
Irises  do.  Iris  stylosa  and  its  very  desirable  varieties,  such  as  pavonina 
and  speciosa  ;  Iris  Histrio,  I.  histrioides,  and  I.  Danfordise  charm  away 
the  desolation  of  winter,  and,  at  all  events  in  the  Isle  of  Wight,  lighten 
up  the  borders  in  a  way  which  could  never  have  been  suspected 
beforehand. 
I  was  once  walking  along  the  road  in  December  with  a  blossom  of 
Iris  stylosa  in  my  hand,  and  I  happened  to  meet  Sir  W.  Hutt.  A  flower 
was  certain  to  draw  him,  and  be  stopped  me  and  asked  me  what  I 
had  chanced  to  get  hold  of.  I  told  him  at  once,  and  he  then  wanted  to 
know  where  and  how  it  wa*  grown.  I  explained  to  him  that  it  came 
from  the  open  border,  and  called  for  no  attention  at  all,  whereupon  he 
remarked,  “  How  foolish  I  am  to  spend  so  much  money  for  coals  to 
grow  Orchids  if  you  can  do  a  thing  of  this  sort  without  any  expense.” 
Iris  stylosa  is  of  a  most  captivating  lavender  colour,  very  delicate 
indeed,  and  quite  certain  to  please.  There  is  also  a  white  form  of  it, 
which  should  not  be  overlooked.  The  great  mistake  in  growing  it  ia  that 
of  catering  for  it  too  much.  It  does  best  in  a  dry,  hungry  soil,  and  will 
then  blossom  profusely. 
Iris  Histrjo  is  a  most  charming  little  bulb,  and  quite  as  much  at  home 
with  me  as  if  it  were  on  the  slopes  of  Lebanon.  It  often  comes  upright 
through  the  snow,  and  is  quite  a  winter  flower.  It  differs  from  Iris 
reticulata  mostly  in  point  of  colour,  which,  to  use  Professor  Foster’s 
words,  ip  as  follows  : — “  The  fall  in  its  central  parts  is  of  creamy  white 
dotted  over  with  blotches  of  a  bright  blue  ;  these  blotches  fuse  together 
at  the  edge  and  tip  of  the  fall  into  a  uniform  ground  colour  of  blue  ;  the 
blue,  however,  is  not  a  pure  blue,  having  a  slight  admixture  of  red.” 
Iris  Danfordiae  is  of  a  very  rich  yellow,  and  therefore  noticeable  in  the 
dark  days  of  the  year  ;  but  it  is  small,  low,  and  “  the  inner  segments  or 
standards  of  the  flower  are  reduced  to  mere  spikes,  hardly  visible  when 
it  is  looked  at  in  the  ordinary  way.”  Sandy  loam  is  what  these  bulbous 
Irises  require,  and  no  one  should  be  without  them  who  has  a  garden  at 
Ryde. 
And  soon  we  come  to  a  time  when  it  is  difficult  to  select.  There  is 
no  season  of  the  year  like  spring  ;  there  are  no  flowers  like  those  of  its 
opening  months.  Flores  sunt  sidera  Terrce,  and  the  early  flowers  of  the 
year  sparkle  like  jewels  in  the  around — so  bright  and  bo  various  they 
are.  The  string  of  names  that  could  be  given  would  utterly  weary  you. 
Muscaris,  Chionodoxas,  Scillas,  Fritfilarias,  Crocuses,  Anemones, 
Narcissi,  Trilliums,  and  a  thousand  more  form  a  concatenation  of  beauty 
which  could  not  be  exceeded.  The  Anemones  are  known  to  you  all,  and 
I  will  say  a  word  about  them,  as  some  choice  must  be  made.  The  origin 
of  the  name  is  a  matter  for  speculation.  Some  say  that  it  comes  from 
the  Greek  word  anemos,  wind,  and  that  the  Anemone  is  very  much 
blown  about  in  the  gusty  month  of  March,  and  that  the  flowers  do  not 
expand  till  then.  Certain  is  it  thatthey  are  very  often  found  in  bleak  windy 
places  ;  but  on  the  other  hand  the  flower  seems  able  to  defy  any  storms 
to  which  it  may  be  exposed,  and  the  petals  cling  tightly  to  the  stalk. 
Another  explanation  is  that  the  seeds  of  the  Anemone  are  light  as 
thistledown,  and  they  are  tossed  hither  and  thither  as  soon  as  they  are 
ripe. 
There  is  a  large  number  of  species  which  come  from  the  South  of 
France,  Italy,  the  Levant,  Palestine,  and  other  countries.  In  Palestine 
the  masses  of  Anemone  fulgens  are  called  the  Saviour’*  blood  drop*,  and 
in  some  places  you  can  hardly  walk  at  all  without  stepping  on  them. 
The  finest  show  of  this  sort  that  I  have  seen  was  on  the  Pic  de  Sancy 
in  France,  where  millions  of  Anemone  sulphurea  and  A.  alpina  were 
nodding  together  in  beautiful  and  indiscriminate  profusion;  The 
Anemone  has  three  colours — red,  yellow,  and  blue,  and  in  that  respect 
it  is  on  a  footing  with  Liuum  ;  but  I  do  not  remember  anything  else  in 
the  game  way.  Anemone  blanda  is  of  a  rich  blue.  A.  ranunculoides  is 
yellow,  and  A  fulgens  is  red.  In  Britain  we  seem  to  have  three  species 
— A.  nemorosa,  A.  pulsatilla,  and  A.  ranunculoides  ;  all  these  are  most 
delightful  in  the  garden,  and  so  are  A.  narcissiflora,  A.  palmata,  A. 
apennina,  and  A.  sulphurea  I  should  be  sorry  to  be  without  any  one  of 
them,  and  A.  nemorosa  Robinsoniana  is  one  of  the  most  delightful  of 
all  spring  flowers,  or  as  Mr.  Nicholson  put*  it,  “one  of  the  prettiest  of 
the  whol°  genus,”  which  comes  to  the  same  thing  in  other  words. 
There  is  a  magnificent  Anemone,  which  was  raised  by  Mr.  Nelson  of 
Aldborough,  and  which  takes  its  name  from  its  native  place.  It  must 
be  3  inches  or  more  across,  and  it  runs  in  my  head  that  even  this  has 
been  eclipsed  by  the  efforts  of  Herr  Max  Leichtlin  ;  if  so  it  would  be 
difficult  to  imagine  anything  finer.  Anemone  palmata  alba  is  a  plant 
that  loves  the  Isle  of  Wight,  and  my  garden  in  particular,  but  the  odd 
thing  is  that  A.  palmata  is  not  of  the  same  mind  at  all.  It  does  hold  on* 
