March  12,  1896. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER 
247 
Tulips  not  Flowering  {C.  J.'). — The  bulbs  are  good,  and  the 
flowers,  we  suspect,  would  have  expanded  had  not  so  much  growth  been 
made  within  the  material  with  which  the  pots  were  covered.  They 
ought  to  have  been  withdrawn  a  fortnight  or  more  sooner. 
Dendroblum  noblle  noblllus  {Herts'). — Thia  is  a  large  and 
deeply  coloured  form  of  the  type,  the  flowers  having  broad  and  well 
formed  segments  of  a  rosy  purple  tinge.  The  lip  is  white,  the  usual 
purple  blotch  in  the  throat  being  much  intensified  in  colour.  It  is 
much  superior  to  the  ordinary  D.  nobile,and  is  a  very  rare  and  expensive 
variety. 
Carnations  for  Cut  Blooms  ( Flower  Grower). — The  following 
are  free  flowering,  hardy,  and  some  strongly  Bcented.  White. — Old 
White  Clove,  Gloire  de  Nancy,  and  W.  Pv  Milner.  Yellow  Ground. — 
Germania,  Pride  of  Penshurst,  and  Mrs.  Reynolds  Hole.  Scarlet. — 
Dundas  Scarlet,  Queen  Victoria,  and  Guiding  Star.  Crimson. — Old 
Crimson  Clove,  Duke  of  Edinburgh,  and  Paul  Engleheart. 
Killing  Crickets  ( Stevenage ). — Traps  are  the  safest ;  the  “Birken¬ 
head  ”  and  “  Demon,”  to  be  had  of  ironmongers  and  nurserymen,  being 
good  also  for  cockroaches.  Poison  is,  perhaps,  less  troublesome,  brn 
care  must  be  used  in  employing  it.  Chemists  sell  phosphor  paste, 
and  this  “  buttered  ”  on  bits  of  bread  and  placed  at  night  near  their 
haunts  is  more  or  less  effective.  Nurserymen  and  horticultural 
sundriesmen  supply  beetle  poison,  which  is  relished  by  these  pests,  and 
one  meal  suffices.  These  preparations  are  better  than  home-compounded 
poisons,  as  there  is  no  fear  of  accident,  except  through  gross  negligence. 
Soluble  Cresol  for  Watering  Tomatoes  ( F .  W.). — This  com¬ 
bination  of  cresylic  acid  (cresol)  with  carbolic  acid  (phenol),  creosote, 
and  other  ingredients  is  not  very  safe  to  use,  even  at  a  strength  of 
1  part  in  320  =  1  gill  (i  pint)  to  10  gallons  of  water,  as  the  creosote  is 
long  in  parting  with  its  injurious  properties,  even  in  the  soil.  It  ought 
not  to  have  been  used,  nor  any  such  crude  substance,  without  being 
saponified.  PlantB  in  pots,  as  a  rule,  are  much  sooner  injured  than 
those  in  soil,  because  the  liquid  is  more  confined  and  a  larger  quantity 
given  per  area  than  to  a  border.  We  should  think  the  “stuff”  will  have 
spent  itself  to  a  great  extent  before  the  plants  are  put  out  in  six  or 
eight  weeks  time,  especially  if  the  soil  is  given  a  good  watering  before 
planting.  Half  the  amount  per  square  yard  is  usually  sufficient,  and 
even  then  it  sterilises  the  soil  for  a  time. 
Mushrooms  Wot  Swelling  ( Bridlington ).  —  The  small  knobs 
which  proceed  from  the  spawn  are  quite  healthy,  but  the  larger — the 
largest  being  less  than  a  pea — are  quite  dead,  and  their  external  cells 
have  been  destroyed  by  the  alternations  of  too  much  and  too  little 
water.  It  is  a  very  common  occurrence  in  Mushroom  houses  somewhat 
dry  from  position  or  internal  circumstances,  especially  at  this  time  of 
year,  and  is  extremely  difficult  to  remedy.  Beds  should  be  firm  and  the 
materials  adequately  moist,  and  kept  so,  if  possible,  by  covering  them  to 
prevent  evaporation.  The  necessity  for  watering  Mushroom  beds  is  an 
evil.  The  spawn  has  run  well,  but  all  the  “life”  has  gone  out  of  the 
sustaining  substance,  which  must  retain  a  certain  amount  of  moisture 
and  continue  to  yield  a  supply  of  nitrogen — that  is,  ammonia,  by  slow 
decomposition,  and  that  means  moisture,  which  is  essential  for  the 
development  of  the  Mushrooms.  This  the  bed  does  not  supply,  there¬ 
fore  water  is  given  at  the  surface  and  on  the  Mushrooms,  causing  them 
to  turn  brown  and  perish,  not  only  in  the  “  pinhead  ”  but  in  the 
“  button  ”  stage.  They  do  not  want  the  water  there,  but  lower  down 
where  the  mycelial  threads  are  situated,  and  when  beds  are  too  dry  it  is 
necessary  to  make  small  holes  and  fill  these  with  tepid  water,  using 
about  a  handful  of  salt  to  a  4  gallon  can  of  water  or  2  ozs.  of  nitrate  of 
soda.  The  holes  Bhould  be  made,  using  half  a  gallon  of  water  or  more 
per  square  yard,  and  in  no  case  over  the  “buttons”  or  “pinheads.” 
When  the  water  has  soaked  in  cover  with  soft  hay,  previously  beaten 
with  a  stick  to  get  rid  of  the  seeds.  This  will  secure  even  moisture  and 
steady  decay. 
Coal  Ashes  as  Manure  {Amateur). — There  is  little  ornomanurial 
value  in  coal  aBhes,  and  the  only  uses  we  have  found  for  them  in  gardens 
are  for  lightening  heavy  soil,  forming  a  base  impervious  to  worms  for 
standing  plants  in  pots  on  in  summer  or  plunging  them  in  winter  to 
protect  the  roots  from  frost,  and  occasionally  for  covering  rows  of  Peas 
or  Beans  after  sowing,  and  lightly  covering  with  earth  as  a  protection 
against  mice  and  slugs.  For  the  latter  purposes  they  are  sometimes 
used  for  placing  around  and  over  the  crowns  of  herbaceous  plants  liable 
to  have  the  crowns  or  young  shoots  destroyed  by  those  pests.  In  those 
ways  coal  ashes  are  useful,  and  they  make  excellent  walks  in  kitchen 
gardens  when  mixed  in  a  thoroughly  dry  state  with  boiling  coal  tar  to  a 
stiffish  mortar-like  consistence. 
Raising  Citrus  trlfollata  from  Seed  {Somerset). — The  seeds 
should  be  sown  in  pots  or  pans,  and  the  seedlings  raised  on  a  hotbed.  If 
the  seeds  are  good  the  plants  will  soon  appear,  and  in  the  course  of 
about  six  weeks  be  fit  for  small  pots.  After  potting  keep  them  close  for 
a  time,  shading  until  established,  but  afterwards  allow  plenty  of  air  to 
harden  them.  During  the  rest  of  the  summer  they  may  be  grown  on  a 
shelf  nearer  the  glass  in  a  cold  frame  or  house.  In  the  winter  they  are 
preferably  kept  in  a  cool  house  with  the  frost  excluded,  and  in  the 
spring  they  may  be  repotted.  If  you  want  bushy  plants  they  must  be 
pinched  at  a  few  joints  of  growth,  not  practising  it  after  June  unless  to 
check  refractory  growths  and  maintain  the  symmetry  of  the  plants. 
After  the  second  year  the  plants  may  be  stood  outdoors  in  a  sheltered 
situation  after  the  growth  is  made,  which  will  harden  the  wood,  and 
with  a  year  or  two  of  this  treatment  the  trees  or  shrubs  will  probably 
flower,  but  all  plants  of  the  Citrus  family  are  tardy  in  coming  into 
bearing  from  seed. 
Beetle  Infesting  Maidenhair  Ferns  (IF.  K.). — The  beetle  is 
the  black  Vine  or  grooved  weevil  (Otiorhynchus  sulcatus),  for  which 
there  is  no  surer  or  better  method  than  capturing  and  killing  them. 
They  feed  at  night,  and  must  be  approached  cautiously,  as  they  speedily 
become  alarmed  by  noise  or  approach  of  light,  and  drop  down,  feigning 
death.  Poisons  cannot  well  be  used  on  Maidenhair  Ferns,  as  there  is 
danger  of  this  getting  on  the  hands. 
Chysis  aurea  {H.  T.). — This  Orchid  delights  in  plenty  of  heat 
and  atmospheric  moisture  while  making  its  growth,  and  during  the  latter 
part  of  the  season  should  be  kept  well  up  to  the  light  in  order  to  con¬ 
solidate  the  growth.  The  roots  must  be  well  supplied  with  water  right 
up  to  the  time  the  pseudo-bulbs  finish  growing,  reducing  it  as  the  foliage 
falls  until  in  the  winter  very  little  is  required.  At  this  time  the  plants 
must  be  kept  much  cooler,  about  50°  as  a  minimum  being  ample.  So 
treated  you  ought  to  have  no  difficulty  in  flowering  this  plant,  the  bloom 
spikes  being  produced  along  with  the  new  growth  in  the  spring.  A  no  e 
on  these  interesting  Orchids  is  in  preparation,  and  will  appear  shortly. 
Seasell’s  Patent  orchid  Baskets.— In  answer  to  “R.  P.  WV’ 
who  writes  respecting  the  new  Orchid  baskets,  we  are  enabled  by_ie 
courtesy  of  the  makers  to  publish  the  illustration  (fig.  45)  Our 
correspondent  wishes  to  know  whether  they  are  an  improvement  on  the 
old  make,  and  if  he  can  recommend  them  to  his  employer.  They  are  an 
improvement  in  several  ways,  the  most  important  being,  in  our  opinion, 
the  fact  of  the  top  piece  keeping  the  rest  of  the  basket  so  rigid,  making 
. . .  ; 
■SS 
‘‘•‘liiiiiiiiiiuITrrr 
_ _ /* . . 
Iliia . 
FIG.  45.— A  GOOD  OKCHID  BASKET. 
it  impossible  to  pull  out  of  the  square,  and  therefore  preventing  any 
danger  of  injury  to  the  roots.  A  difficulty  with  the  old  style  of  basket 
was  often  found  in  fixing  the  plants  in  position.  This,  as  will  be  Been 
by  a  glance  at  the  illustration,  is  obviated,  and  it  is  as  easy  to  place  a 
plant  in  one  of  these  baskets  as  into  an  ordinary  flower  pot.  They  are 
well  worth  the  difference  in  price  charged  between  them  and  the  old 
style. 
Pear  Spurs  {An  Old  Subscriber). — The  pruning  is  faultless.  Those 
of  No.  1  show  the  tree  to  be  vigorous,  too  much  so  for  free  bearing,  the 
roots  probably  having  struck  down  into  the  subsoil,  and  it  would  be  an 
advantage  to  see  to  this  and  cut  off  any  straight-down  roots,  as  there  is 
little  prospect  of  its  bearing  when  making  such  wood.  No.  2  is  in  much 
better  condition,  form  short  stubby  spurs  on  which  fruit  usually  comes 
freely,  and  there  is  little  need  of  the  knife.  No.  3  is  not  a  bad  form  of 
spur,  but  the  terminal  bud  is  not  a  blossom  one.  All  such  ought  not  to 
be  shortened,  but  left  intact,  and  if  properly  exposed  to  light  should 
form  blossom  buds  this  season.  No.  4  is  correctly  pruned,  but  the 
growth,  like  that  of  No.  1,  is  too  vigorous  for  bearing  fruit,  the  roots  of 
the  tree  probably  having  gone  straight  down,  as  is  not  uncommonly  the 
case  in  narrow  borders  when  means  are  not  taken  to  prevent  it  and  insure 
moderate  growth  and  fruitfulness. 
Eucharis  Bulbs  Infested  by  Insects  {S.  B.). — The  bulbs  are 
badly  infested  with  the  bulb  mite  (Rhizoglyphus  echinopus,  Clap.,  or 
Tyroglyphus  echinopuB,  Fum.  and  Rob.).  There  are  swarms  of  young 
mites  and  a  few  of  the  parents.  As  you  seem  to  have  a  difficulty  in 
procuring  such  a  common  substance  as  nitrate  of  soda,  which  kills  the 
pests  by  the  nitric  acid,  you  may  possibly  be  able  to  procure  ammoniacal 
gas  liquor  at  the  gasworks,  and  if  you  are  be  sure  you  do  not  get 
gas  tar,  or  any  mixture  of  it.  Dilute  the  pure  gas  liquor  with  six  times 
its  bulk  of  soft  water  of  the  same  temperature  as  the  plants,  and  water 
them  with  it  so  that  the  diluted  liquor  shows  at  the  drainage.  You  may 
use  this  at  once,  and  when  water  is  again  needed  supply  it  clear. 
The  liquid  will  possibly  affect  the  plants  for  a  short  time  ;  but  they  will 
soon  go  ahead,  when  it  will  be  advisable  to  repeat  the  application  occa¬ 
sionally.  If  you  prefer,  and  it  certainly  is  safer,  procure  a  tin  of 
Clibran’s  Eucharis  mite  killer,  which  may  be  procured  of  or  through  any 
large  nurseryman  or  seedsman,  and  follow  the  instructions.  It  is 
effective  for  its  purpose  if  properly  used. 
Names  of  Fruits. — {A.  P.).— 1,  Northern  Greening;  2,  Forge; 
3,  Hollandbury  ;  4,  Court  of  Wick  ;  5,  Fearn’s  Pippin  ;  6,  Winter 
Greening. 
Names  of  Plants.—  {Mona).— A,  Dendrobium  luteolum  ;  2,  a 
Maxillaria,  variety  undeterminable. 
