September  26, 1896. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTULE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER 
301 
may  be  accommodated  either  in  the  Cattleya  or  East  Indian  house, 
a  moist  atmosphere  always  and  a  shady  position  being  afforded  it. 
Few  Orchids  require  more  water  at  the  root,  daily  applications 
being  necessary  in  hot  weather  if  the  plants  are  in  good  health  and 
growing  freely.  A  suitable  compost  will  be  three  parts  of  loam 
fibre,  one  of  sphagnum  moss,  and  one  of  peat,  adding  a  few  pieces 
of  crocks  to  ensure  a  well  divided  and  aerated  condition. 
The  pots  may  be  filled  three  parts  full  of  drainage,  and  over 
this  a  little  rough  moss,  placing  the  roots  thereon  and  working  the 
compost  carefully  among  them.  There  will  be  no  need  to  elevate 
the  plants  above  the  rims,  in  fact  it  is  detrimental  to  healthy 
plants,  as  they  are  too  apt  to  get  dry,  but  for  small  or  semi- 
establisbed  plants  it  may  be  done.  All  the  water  needed  for  a 
few  days  after  potting  may  be  given  through  the  syringe,  but  as 
soon  as  the  roots  are  seen  to  be  on  the  move  they  may  have  a 
good  supply. 
C.  Sedeni  was  raised  in  the  nurseries  of  Messrs.  Veitch  by 
Mr.  Seden,  who  obtained  it  by  crossing  C.  Schlimi  with  C.  longi- 
must  be  neatly  trimmed  off  with  the  shears,  as  the  ragged  ends  of 
moss  or  peat  look  untidy,  and  make  it  difficult  to  determine  whether 
or  not  the  plants  are  dry  at  the  roots.  If  the  pseudo-bulbs  are 
plump  and  the  foliage  healthy  very  little  water  will  be  needed 
until  the  new  roots  are  emitted,  but  it  will  be  necessary  to  sprinkle 
the  surface  occasionally  to  keep  the  moss  green  and  maintain  a 
moist  atmosphere  about  the  plants.  When  growth  is  well  on  the 
move  it  will  require  abundance  of  water,  as  the  shallow  compost 
runs  dry  very  quickly,  but  during  the  winter  only  enough  must  ber 
given  to  keep  the  pseudo-bulbs  from  shrivelling. 
The  flowers  are  produced  on  long  branching  scapes  ai  various 
times  during  the  summer  and  autumn,  and  as  these  last  a  long, 
time  in  good  condition  they  ought  not  to  be  left  on  even  the 
strongest  plants  until  they  fade,  while  on  weak  or  small  unhealthy 
plants  they  should  be  removed  soon  after  they  are  open.  Each 
flower  is  about  2  inches  across,  with  almost  equal  sepals  and  petals 
and  an  irregularly  rounded  lip.  The  ground  colour  is  a  glossy 
brown  with  yellow  and  red  disk  markings.  A  light  and  airy  posi- 
Fig.  49.— ODONTOGLOSSUM  (MILTONIA)  VEXILLARIUM. 
folium.  Several  varieties  are  described,  notably,  C.  S.  candidulum, 
a  variety  with  white  sepals  and  petals,  this  being  raised  from  the 
white  form  of  C.  Schlimi  ;  C.  S.  albiflorum,  C.  S.  porphyreum,  and 
C.  S.  albanense.  The  former  has  darker,  the  latter  lighter  blossoms 
than  those  of  the  type. 
Oncidium  crispum. 
This  fine  old  Brazilian  species  ranks  among  the  most  ornamental 
in  the  genus,  and  is  a  very  free-flowering  and  useful  plant.  If 
judiciously  treated  it  may  be  cultivated  with  comparative  tase ; 
indeed,  it  is  much  more  amenable  to  culture  than  some  of  the 
stronger  growing  kinds.  The  best  mode  of  treatment  is  on  a  raft 
or  in  a  shallow  basket  with  only  a  small  amount  of  compost,  and 
this  of  the  best.  Good  peat  fibre  and  sphagnum  moss  in  equal 
proportions  will  grow  it  well,  and  the  plants  require  to  be 
carefully  fixed  in  position,  the  roots  not  being  very  strong  or 
always  plentiful.  If  a  newly  imported  plant,  the  rhizomes  may  be 
kept  on  the  surface  of  the  compost  and  held  in  position  by  passing 
a  wire  over  them  and  through  the  bottom  rods,  protecting  the 
point  of  contact  with  a  thin  strip  of  cork. 
Established  plants  may  usually  be  fixed  in  the  o-  'inary  way  with 
the  dibber,  using  a  few  pegs  or  stakes  if  necessary,  ibe  surface  : 
tion  not  far  from  the  glass  in  the  Cattleya  house  suits  it  best  while- 
growing.  A  large,  richlv  coloured  form  of  this  Oncidium  is  known 
as  0.  c.  grandiflorum. — H.  R.  R. 
YEGETABLE  JUDGING  AT  SHREWSBURY. 
I  W^AS  pleased  to  read  “An  Old  Hand’s”  fair  and  highly  practical 
letter  in  last  week’s  Journal  of  Horticulture,  re  judging  vegetables  at 
the  great  Shrewsbury  show  ;  and  if  I  may  venture  to  express  an  opinion 
on  the  editorial  note  appended  thereto,  I  should  say  that  the  remarks 
went  a  little  farther  than  the  occasion  required  in  referring  to  the 
reporter  as  having  “  judged  at  more  vegetable  shows  this  year  than  ‘An 
Old  Hand’  has.  or  any  of  the  judges  he  (‘  An  Old  Hand’)  is  desirous  of 
defending.”  Now,  this  statement  can  only  be  conjecture  on  your  part. 
But  assuming  it  to  be  correct,  does  this  fact  alone  qualify  him  as  being 
better  qualified  to  judge  vegetables  than  actual  growers  are?  Moreover, 
is  he  to  be  allowed  to  criticise  the  awards  made  by  the  four  judges  in  ques¬ 
tion,  and  to  make  inuendos  as  to  what  had  been  done  at  previous  Shrews¬ 
bury  shows  with  impunity,  apparently  for  no  better  reason  than  that  the 
judges  happened  to  be  gardeners  to  “  great  noblemen,”  and  that  he  (the 
reporter)  had  not  been  invited  to  assist  in  making  the  awards  ?  In 
I  the  interests  of  horiiculture  and  the  horticultural  press,  fair  play 
