October  3,  1901. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
317 
EANINGS^ 
Stripping  Ivy  from  a  Church. — A  correspondent  to  a  morning 
paper  justly  states  that  “  hundreds  of  artists  and  lovers  of  the 
antique  and  picturesque  will  be  surprised  and  shocked  to  learn  that 
the  new  reotor  of  Winchelsea  purposes  stripping  the  quaint  old  church 
of  the  magnificent  Ivy  which  is  one  of  its  chief  glories.  Perhaps  a 
timely  protest  from  all  who  love  the  ancient  cinque  port  may  yet 
avail  to  prevent  what  seems  an  act  of  wanton  vandalism.” 
Voung  Fines. — All  young  stock  should  now  be  arranged  so  as  to 
obtain  the  fullest  benefit  of  light  and  air.  As  the  sun  diminishes  a 
corresponding  diminution  of  the  temperature  must  take  place  at  night, 
ventilating  at  75°,  closing  at  that,  and  gradually  lowering  the  artificial 
heat  to  the  winter  standard  of  65°  in  the  daytime,  and  55°  to  60°  at  night. 
Ventilate  freely  on  all  favourable  occasions,  paying  particular  attention 
to  watering.  Examine  the  plants  about  once  a  week,  and  whenever  one 
needs  water  give  it  copiously  at  about  the  same  temperature  as  the  bed. 
— PfiACTICE. 
Zephyranthes  Atamasco. — This  pretty  bulbous  plant  is  at  present 
flowering  freely  at  Kew,  both  planted  out  in  a  cold  frame  and  in  pots 
iudoors.  Under  the  former  treatment  it  seems  to  succeed  best,  the 
leaves  being  more  vigorous,  and  the  flowers  much  finer.  It  is  a  native 
of  Virginia  and  Carolina,  where  it  is  said  to  grow  plentifully  in  the  woods 
and  fields.  Under  suitable  conditions  the  leaves  range  from  1  foot 
to  foot  in  length,  and  are  narrow  and  Rush-like.  The  flowers 
are  borne  singly  on  sturdy  scapes,  from  9  inches  to  a  foot  in  length  ; 
they  are  white  in  colour,  with  a  large  green  eye,  and  are  occasionally 
suffused  with  pink  on  the  outer  side.  Fine  flowers  exceed  3  inohes  in 
diameter,  though  often  they  are  found  nearly  an  inch  smaller.  When 
grown  out  of  doors  it  should  be  given  a  dry  warm  soil,  and  if  possible 
be  planted  at  the  foot  of  a  wall.  When  once  established  it  increases 
rapidly,  and  the  clumps  require  dividing  occasionally.  It  is  an  old 
plant  in  English  gardens,  and  is  said  to  have  been  in  cultivation  at  Kew 
as  long  ago  as  1680. — W.  D. 
Llllums  in  Japan. — It  has  been  claimed  that  L.  auratum  is  a 
cross  between  longiflorum  and  Henry i.  Mr.  J.  K.  L.  M.  Farquhar  of 
Boston,  who  has  travelled  in  Japan,  does  not  accept  this  idea,  and, 
speaking  before  the  Society  of  American  Florists,  said  that  the  olaim 
was  made  by  those  who  had  never  been  in  Japan.  L.  Henryi  was 
discovered  in  1888,  and  two  years  ago  only  306  bulbs  of  it  were  to  be 
found  in  Japan.  L.  auratum  was  abundant  and  widely  distributed  until 
the  supply  was  diminished  by  exportations.  L.  longiflorum  is  also 
abundant,  L.  auratum  he  considers  a  species.  Lilium  lancifolium  is 
cultivated  in  large  quantities,  but  L.  auratum  is  native  and  is  collected, 
and  the  supply  is  being  exhausted.  That  L.  auratum  is  collected  Mr. 
Farquhar  thinkB  is  well  proven  by  the  faot  that  no  two  consignments 
have  the  same  colour  of  dii%  on  the  bulbs.  These  Lilies,  he  says,  are 
found  in  pockets  in  the  mountains,  at  a  depth  of  18  inches  below  the 
surface.  The  prospect  is  that  we  shall  not  get  this  Lily  much  longer 
from  Japan,  and  the  price  will  become  prohibitory. 
Strawberries  In  Pots. — Where  autumn  and  winter  fruiting 
plants  are  grown  they  must  without  further  delay  be  placed  under 
glass  and  on  shelves,  so  that  they  may  enjoy  a  free  circulation  of  air, 
ventilating  so  as  to  expel  damp,  as  the  fertilisation  of  the  flowers  is 
not  satisfactorily  effected  in  a  moist  atmosphere.  Plants  swelling  and 
ripening  their  fruit  in  frames  should  have  moderate  ventilation,  and 
though  Strawberries  will  ripen  at  this  season  in  cold  frames,  they 
swell  better  and  the  fruit  is  improved  in  a  house  where  there  is  a 
moderate  degree  of  heat,  50°  to  55°  as  a  minimum,  70°  to  75°  as  a 
maximum,  by  artificial  means,  in  which  they  have  air  on  all  favourable 
occasions.  Plants  for  next  year’s  fruiting  are  late,  owing  to  the 
droughty  weather,  the  crowns  not  being  so  well  matured  nor  so 
strong  as  desirable.  Those  intended  for  early  forcing  should  be  placed 
on  a  base  impervious  to  worms  in  frames  or  cold  pits,  exposing  them 
fully  to  every  gleam  of  sun,  employing  the  lights  only  to  ward  off 
heavy  rains,  and  at  night  when  frost  prevails.  Keep  the  remainder  of 
ihe  plantB  in  a  sunny  position,  as  they  will  require  every  ray  of  light 
and  sun’s  warmth  to  enable  them  tojmalure.the  crowns  properly. — G.  A. 
Sterility  of  Hybrids. — Scientific  men  are  fond  of  throwing  it 
up  to  practical  people  that  they  are  behind  the  times ;  but  devotees 
of  soienoe  are  often  among  the  crowd  that  live  in  glass  houses  and 
yet  throw  stones.  Horticulturists  have  long  ago  learned  that  hybrids 
are  as  fertile  as  their  parents;  and  Orchids,  gesneriaceous  plants,  and 
many  other  classes  furnish  abundant  evidence.  But  that  hybrids  are 
sterile,  or  generally  sterile,  is  still  a  doctrine  on  which  many  pretty 
“  theories  ”  are  founded  by  leaders  in  science. 
Early  Fruiting  Pines.  —  Queens  are  best  for  the  purpose,  but 
there  is  not  always  a  certainty  of  their  doing  so  unless  they  are  given  a 
period  of  comparative  rest  after  making  a  good  growth.  Plants 
intended  for  starting  at  the  new  year  should  be  kept  in  a  temperature 
of  about  65°  in  the  daytime  by  artificial  means,  60°  at  night,  ventilating 
at  70°,  closing  at  that,  and  allowing  the  bottom  heat  to  fall  to  70°  to  75°. 
Water  the  plants  only  when  necessary,  but  do  not  allow  them  to  become 
so  dry  as  to  cause  the  foliage  to  become  limp. — A. 
Jottings  on  Pines. — Plants  that  are  showing  fruit  will  be  valuable 
when  fruit  is  scarce  and  dear.  Afford  suoh  plants  the  best  positions  in 
the  fruiting  department.  Maintain  a  temperature  of  70°  at  night,  75° 
artificially  by  day,  up  to  85°  to  90°  with  sun,  closing  at  85°,  sprinkling 
the  paths  when  their  surfaces  become  dry,  and  occasionally  the  plants 
on  fine  afternoons.  Keep  the  bottom  heat  steady  at  85°  to  90°. 
Examine  the  plants  once  a  week  for  watering,  and  if  any  require  it 
afford  a  supply  of  clear  liquid  manure  at  about  the  same  temperature 
as  that  of  the  beds*  Care  must  be  taken  not  to  over  water  the  fruiters, 
as  that  has  a  tendency  to  cause  the  fruit  when  cut  to  be  black  at  the 
centre. — P. 
Tree  Carnation  E.  Crocker. — We  take  it  as  a  duty  to  bring 
to  the  notice  of  our  readers  varieties  of  Carnations  whose  merits  we 
judge  to  be  such  that  no  one  disparage.  The  bloom  which  our  artist 
has  pourtrayed  in  this  instance  was  from  a  plant  staged  in  the  Drill 
Hall  on  the  occasion  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  meeting 
within  that  building  on  Tuesday,  September  10th.  The  Floral 
Committee  at  that  meeting  affixed  an  award  of  merit  card  to  this 
variety,  which  was  staged  by  Mr.  H.  J.  Jones  of  Ryeoroft  Nursery, 
Lewisham,  S.E.  The  variety  originated,  we  believe,  on  the  Continent, 
from  whence  Mr.  Jones  procured  it.  The  blooms  are  very  deep  pink 
in  colour,  strongly  resembling  the  American  wonder — namely,  Carnation 
Mrs.  T.  W.  Lawson,  The  flowers  have  the  advantage  of  long  stalks> 
are  delightfully  odorous,  and  possess  a  non-splitting  calyx. 
New  Dahlias. — First-class  certificates  were  awarded  at  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Society’s  show  in  the  Drill  Hall  on  September  24th 
to  the  following  Dahlias  : — Show  Dahlia  Standard,  from  Mr.  G.  St. 
Pierre  Harris.  Pompon  Montague  Wootten,  Bent  by  Mr.  C.  Turner. 
Singles  :  Madge,  from  Messrs.  Cheal  &  Sons ;  Maid  of  Athens,  from 
Mr.  F.  W.  Seale  ;  and  Sylvia,  from  Mr.  E.  Mawley.  Also  the  following 
Cactus  varieties  : — Goldfinch,  Lilac,  Florence,  Aunt  Chloe,  all  from  Mr. 
H.  Stredwick;  Mrs.  Hobart  and  Mrs.  C.  Mortimer,  from  Messrs.  Cheal 
and  Sons;  Clio,  from  Messrs.  J.  Burrell  &  Co.;  Spotless  Queen,  from 
Mr.  J.  T.  West ;  and  Mrs.  Clarke,  Clarence  Webb,  Columbia,  Gabriel, 
Ophir,  and  Ringdove,  all  from  Messrs.  Keynes,  Williams  &  Co. 
Three  Showy  Hsemanthuses. — In  the  Cape  house  at  Kew  one 
of  the  most  showy  groups  is  made  up  of  different  species  of 
Hasmanthus,  the  bright  coloured  flowers  of  which  are  very  effective. 
The  most  conspicuous  plants  are  Clarkei,  coccineus  var.  ooarctatus, 
and  tigrinus.  The  first  named  is  a  garden  hybrid  between  H.  albifloe, 
a  white  flowered  plant,  and  the  bright  red  coccineus.  The  inflorescence 
resembles  coccineus  in  colour,  and  the  whole  plant  suggests  that 
species  as  predominating  over  the  other.  The  scape  grows  6  to  9  inohes 
in  height,  and  the  flower  head  is  about  3  inches  across.  H.  coccineus 
var.  coarctatus  differs  by  having  flowers  of  a  different  shade  of  colour, 
and  by  the  flower  scapes  being  green  with  a  few  dark  red  dots. 
H.  tigrinus  is  a  S.  African  species  that  has  been  in  cultivation  in 
England  since  1730,  and  is  said  to  have  been  cultivated  by  the  Dutch 
for  nearly  a  century  before  that.  Like  the  other  plants  mentioned,  it  is 
deciduous,  but  differs  slightly  from  both  in  flowers  and  leaves.  In  this 
case  the  scape  is  deep  red,  and  the  flowers  darker  in  oolour  than  those 
of  the  previously  named.  As  the  flowers  are  borne  just  in  advance  of 
the  leaves  appearing,  and  the  growing  season  is  midwinter,  it  is 
necessary  to  select  as  light  a  place  as  possible  for  them,  and  a 
minimum  temperature  of  45°  should  be  given.  When  the  leaves 
commence  to  turn  yellow  water  should  be  withheld  and  a  rest  of 
several^ months  duration  be  given  during  summer. — W.  D. 
