April  10,  1902. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
323 
great  advantage  over  the  ordinary  dwarf  Nasturtiums  in  that  they 
produced  but  few  seeds,  and  were  therefore  much  more  persistent 
in  flowering.  I  obtained  awards  for  a  few  improved  varieties 
when  grown  at  Chiswick,  viz.,  Bedford  Rival,  scarlet;  Yellow 
Compactum  Luteum,  improved,  yellow;  and  lustrous,  criinson. 
They  are  probably  still  to  be  met  with,  and  as  they  seed  sparingly 
a  stock  should  be  kept  up  by  means  of  cuttings. 
Nemesia. 
A  representative  of  this  genus,  known  as  N.  strumosa  Suttoni, 
gained  a  certificate  for  the  introducers,  Messrs.  Sutton  and  Sons, 
of  Reading,  in  1892.  It  is  a  very  distinct  type,  producing  orange 
flowers  of  various  shades,  some  with  brilliant  fiery  tints,  and  a 
quite  dwarf  growing  section  has  been  selected  from  it.  As  seeds 
are  high  priced,  the  presumption  is  it  produces  them  but 
sparingly.  It  is  seen  at  its  best  when  gi’own  in  pots. 
Nemophila  and  Nepenthes. 
It  is  twenty  years  ago,  since  a  Nemophila  obtained  an  award 
from  the  Floral  Committee,  when  Messrs.  Carter  and  Co. 
exhibited  N.  atomaria  atro-coerulea.  '  The  large  flowered  forms, 
N.  insignis  and  N.  maculata,  do  not  seem  to  be  capable  of  im¬ 
provement,  as  no  varieties  of  either  have  been  produced. 
From  the  time  that  Nepenthes  Dominiana  (probably  the  first 
garden  hybrid  raised)  gained  a  Certificate  of  Merit  when  sliown 
by  Messrs.  Veitch  and  Sons  in  1862,  till  the  present  time,  new 
forms,  occasionally  introductions  from  abroad,  but  more  fre¬ 
quently  of  late,  garden  hybrids,  nearly  three  dozen  awards  have 
been  made,  mainly  to  the  firm  just  named.  Some  have  very  large 
pitchers,  like  those  of  N.  Rajah;  some  have  small  ones;  all  are 
more  or  less  finely  marked.  A  lai^e  specimen  plant  laden  with  its 
curious  leaf  appendages  is  indeed  a  remarkable  sight.  They  are 
highly  ornamental  as  well  as  interesting  and  curious,  and  are 
popularly  known  as  “  Pitcher  Plants.” 
Nerine. 
The  old  Guernsey  Lily  (N.  sarniensis)  which  is  imported  from 
Guernsey  early  in  the  autumn  by  the  bulb  dealers,  and  wdiich, 
true  to  its  instincts,  will  bloom  in  a  dry  state,  has  been  so  long 
in  cultivation  as  to  be  known  to  all ;  but  of  late  years,  in  the 
hands  of  Mr.  H.  J.  Elwes  especially,  many  new  forms  have  been 
obtained,  a  dozen  or  more  awards  having  been  made  to  new 
varieties  raised  by  Mr.  Elwes  since  1897.  In  making  his  crosses 
this  successful  raiser  has  no  doubt  employed  such  species  as 
N.  curvifolia,  N.  flexuosa,  and  N.  sarniensis..  As  far  back  as 
1864  a  Certificate  of  Merit  was  awarded  to  N.  coruscans  major,  a 
form  of  sarniensis.  In  1887  the  same  honour  was  obtained 
by  N.  Manselli,  and  in  1888  N.  excellens  had  also  a  certificate, 
and  N.  flexuosa  major  in  1896.  Since  then  all  the  new  forms 
have  come  from  Mr.  Elwes,  and  shades  of  pink,  rose,  cerise,  and 
even  a  tint  of  blue  characterise  the  improvements.  A  favourite 
form  is  known  as  N.  Fothergilli,  with  its  variety  major.  Top¬ 
dressing  rather  than  repotting  is  followed  in  the  culture  of 
Nerines.  They  bloom  chiefly  in  the  autumn  and  winter,  but  vary 
with  different  species  and  their  varieties,  according  to  the  habit 
of  blooming  before  or  after  the  leaves  appear.  A  period  of  rest 
is  necessary,  when  the  pots  should  be  placed  in  a  cool  place  and 
the  soil  allowed  to  go  i>erfectly  dry,  until  the  time  of  activity 
commences. — R.  Dean,  V.M.H. 
(To  be  concluded.) 
Iris  Kffiflipferi,  the  Japanese  Iris. 
From  “  Le  Moniteur  d’Horticulture  ”  we  extract  the  gist  of 
an  article  by  Otto  Bailiff'  on  the  treatment  and  varieties  of  the 
above  Iris,  as  follows :  “  At  last  we  respond  to  the  desires  of  our 
readers  for  notes  on  the  culture  of  these  choice  Japanese  Irises. 
We  counsel  the  springtime  as  the  best  period  for  planting, 
choosing  a  position  well  exposed  to  the  sun,  and  a  soil  that  will 
be  constantly  saturated  by  water  during  their  period  of  growth. 
In  winter,  on  the  contrary,  stagnant  water  is  useless  to  them, 
and  it  is  then  necessary  to  cover  the  rhizomes  with  dry  leaves  or 
litter  in  order  to  protect  them  from  severe  frosts.  Iris  Ksempferi 
does  not  like  to  be  increased  by  division.  This  operation  harms 
the  plants  and  causes  degeneracy.  The  propagation  by  seeds  is 
preferable  for  obtaining  vigorous  plants  such  as  those  imported 
each  year  from  Japan  to  England.  Within  the  last  few  years 
horticulture  has  been  enriched  by  a  number  of  beautiful  varieties. 
Hereunder  are  some  of  the  choicest  of  these,  which  we  have 
admired  and  noted  at  the  principal  exhibitions  in  Great  Britain : 
Aida. — Large,  single  flowers  ;  crimson,  veined  with  violet. 
Cleopatra.  —  Enormous  double  flowers  ;  purple-violet  with  an 
orange  centre. 
Calypso. — Large  single  flowers  ;  lilac,  veined  with  crimson. 
Hamlet. — Magnificent  single  flower ;  violet  and  purple. 
Jersey  Beauty. — Enormous  double  flowers;  white,  with  yellow 
centre. 
Leonidas. — Large  double  flower ;  ci’imson  with  centre  nearly 
l)lack. 
AIacbeth.  Single  flower  ;  ^’Rle  blue,  with  white  centre. 
iMiQUELLi.  -  Single  ;  lilac,  streaked  witli  purple,  orange  centre. 
Oberon.  -Enormous  doul)le  flowers  ;  tender  lilac,  centre  blue. 
Ophelia. — A  splendid,  large,  single  flower;  pure  white. 
Penelope.  —Double  flowers ;  purijle,  veined  with  lilac,  centre 
shaded  yellow. 
Saturn. — Large  double  flowers  ;  purple  shaded  and  blue. 
Venus. — Enoi-mous  double  flowers;  delicately  tinted  with  tender 
rose. 
The  exceiitional  beauty  of  these  brilliant  flowers,  and  the 
relatively  modest  prices  of  the  rhizomes,  will  doubtlessly  strongly 
attract  our  readers  to  procure  some  of  the  varieties,  which  may 
easily  be  had  from  the  leading  nurserymen.” 
[For  water  and  bog  gardens  these  Irises  are  indis- 
pemsable. — Ed.] 
Fumigation  Methods. 
Ill  the  various  States  of  North  America,  but  New  York  and 
California  especially,  the  power  of  hydrocyanic  acid  as  a  means 
for  destroymg  the  many  pests  that  infest  the  fruit  tree  orchards 
and  greenhouse  plants  has  been  gradually  discovered  by  careful 
experhnents  carried  on  by  State  entomologists  and  chemists  in 
the  countiy  during  the  last  fifteen  years.  It  was  in  September, 
1886,  that  Mr.  D.  H.  Coquillett,  of  the  U.S.  Department  of 
Agriculture,  began  seriously  to  study  the  methods  of  fumigation, 
and  extensive  experiments  were  tried,  during  Avhich  the  idea  of 
using  hydrocyanic  gas  was  conceived  and  eventually  thoroughly 
tested.  Others  took  up  the  matter.  Fruit  growers  lent  their 
trees  and  assisted  at  the  trials  with  the  new  gas;  essays  ivere 
read  and  pamphlets  prepared,  and  gradually  the  new  discovery 
found  favour  far  and  wide.  True  enough,  the  system  is  even  now 
only  moderately  practised ;  but  from  all  accounts  it  would  seem 
that  its  elficiency  has  been  made  perfectly  manifest,  and  its 
further  application  is  almost  a  certainty.  The  book  written  by 
Professor  W.  G.  Johnston  is  the  first  that  has  appeared  treating 
exclusively  on  fumigation  in  all  its  phases.  Mr.  Johnston  him¬ 
self  has  been  to  considerable  expense  and  trouble  in  testing  the 
economic  use  of  hydrocyanic  acid  ;  but  to  detail,  even  in  outline, 
the  results  of  his  wmrk  would  necessitate  much  more  of  our  space 
than  can  be  afforded.  But  the  following  are  facts  as  published 
which  may  be  of  service  to  home  cultivators  who  would  care  to 
experiment  with  hydrocyanic  gas.  The  chemicals  used  for 
generating  it  are ;  (1)  Fused  cyanide  of  potassium,  (2)  sulphuric 
acid,  and  (3)  water.  The  cost  for  young  nursery  trees,  we  are 
told,  is  only  25  cents  per  1,000  trees,  and  the  fumigating  can 
be  performed  in  less  than  an  hour  without  any  danger  to  the 
trees.  It  has  been  found  that  the  foliage  must  be  first  of  all  dry, 
or  nearly  so.  Plants  are  less  injured  by  a  short  exposure  to  a 
relatively  large  amount  of  gas  than  by  a  long  exposure  to  a 
relatively  small  amount.  Experiments  have  shown,  too,  that 
the  gas  was  most  injurious  to  foliage  on  sunshiny  days  in  autumn 
between  9  a.m.  and  4  p.m.  ;  that  dormant  leaf  and  buds  treated 
with  0.20  gramme  cyanide  per  cubic  foot  were  not  injured ;  that 
trees  treated  in  the  morning  before  9  o’clock  and  in  the  afternoon 
after  4  o’clock,  even  in  sunshine,  have  the  leaves  little  affected; 
that  trees  treated  at  night  with  normal  doses  do  not  have  the 
foliage  hurt  at  all.  Plum,  Peach,  Nectarine,  and  Apple  trees, 
together  with  Strawberries,  Roses,  Cucumbers,  Melons,  Vines, 
and  many  greenhouse  plants  have  all  been  put  upon  trial,  and 
it  has  been  found  that  some  varieties  of  the  respective  trees  or 
plants  are  more  susceptible  to  injury  than  are  others.  The 
normal  strength  of  the  gas  in  the  majority  of  cases  w'as 
0.25  gramme  per  cubic  foot  exposed  for  one  hour  at  the  longest. 
This  is  the  strength  recommended  for  all  nurseiy  stock  above 
3ft  in  height.  A  number  of  chapters  in  this  decidedly  useful  book 
are  devoted  to  descriptions  of  the  apparatus  and  equipments,  in 
the  form  of  bell  tents,  boxes,  and  sheds,  used  for  fumigating 
nursery  and  orchard  stock.  The  illustrations  are  both  liberal  and 
elucidatory.  The  caution  is  given  never  to  fumigate  trees  after 
the  buds  have  begun  to  open  hi  the  spring.  At  the  same  time, 
Mr.  A.  D.  Hall,  of  Wye  College,  in  Kent,  we  believe,  has  success¬ 
fully  fumigated  Vines  while  in  leaf  and  bloom  with,  this  gas 
without  doing  harm.  No  animal  or  insect  seems  to  be  able  to 
breathe  it  and  live;  and  in  America  it  has  been  also  employed 
against  bugs,  rats,  mice,  prairie _  dogs,  &c.  _  We  should  like  to 
know  of  further  experiments  being  made  in  England — say  at 
Chiswick,  for  example — as,  when  carefully  and  skilfully  us^, 
this  gas  would  seem  to  be  efficacious,  cheap,  and  prompt  in  its 
action.  Professor  Johnston  has  gathered  all  the  available 
information  on  the  subject,  and  has  also  obtained  reports  from 
most  of  the  States  of  the  Union,  from  Europe,  Canada,  and 
Australia.  We  earnestly  recommend  his  book  to  our  readers. 
*  “Fumigation  Methods,”  by  Professor  W.  L.  Joliiiston.  New  York: 
Orange  Judd  Company,  1902.  Price  not  stated. 
