November  28,  1901.  JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
483 
Angrsecum  bilobum. 
Herein  we  have  one  of  the  most  charming  species  of 
Angrsecum,  a  genus  that  furnishes  flowers  at  once  exceedingly 
beautiful  and  frequently  of  the  strangest  form  and  of  great 
interest.  Nearly  all  of  them  are  natives  of  Madagascar  or  the 
West  Coast  of  Africa,  and  one  or  two  hail  from  the  Japanese 
islands.  A.  bilobum  is  a  West  African  member.  It  is  a  very 
dwarf  species,  2in  to  6in  in  height,  and  has  a  neat  habit.  The 
white  flowers  (occasionally  rose-tinged)  are  very  odorous,  and 
are  developed  in  long  racemes  as 
shown  in  our  illustration  on  this 
page.  Angraecum  bilobum  flowers 
in  autumn,  and  is  decidedly  one  of 
the  sweetest  little  Orchids  we 
have.  To  do  it  justice,  it  should 
be  suspended  near  the  glass.  As 
a  rule,  the  flowers  last  for  several 
weeks. 
Sophronitis  violacea. 
Many  who  are  acquainted  with 
and  admire  the  showy  S.  grandiflora 
are  quite  unaware  of  the  beauty 
of  other  species  in  this  not  every 
extensive  genus.  S.  violacea  is 
not,  of  course,  so  showy  as  the 
above,  but  the  pretty  soft  purplish 
tint  of  the  blossoms  make  it  very 
attractive  when  well  done.  To 
grow  it  properly,  it  needs  quite 
different  treatment  to  others  in 
the  genus,  and  the  healthiest  lot 
of  plants  I  ever  had  were  grown 
not  in  pots  or  baskets,  but  on 
pieces  of  Tree  Fern  stem,  sus¬ 
pended  from  tile  roof  in  the  cool 
end  of  the  Cattleya  house. 
Under  this  treatment  the 
rhizomes  have  ample  room  to-  ex¬ 
tend  themselves  in  every  direc¬ 
tion.  They  are  not  cribbed  and 
confined  as  they  would  be  within  a 
pot,  and  every  young  lead  can  find 
a  roothold.  This,  of  course,  adds 
materially  to  the  vigour  of  the 
plant.  If  the  Fern  stems  cannot 
be  obtained,  then  teak  blocks, 
lightly  dressed  with  moss,  make  a 
very  good  substitute.  But  the 
natural  roughness  of  the  former 
material,  its  m o is tu rc-h o  1  d i n g  and 
long-lasting  properties,  give  it  a 
great  advantage  over  all  others. 
Drying  off  must  never  be  prac¬ 
tised  with  S.  violacea.  A  slight 
slackening  of  moisture  there  must 
be  when  growth  is  least  active,  but 
at  no  time  must  it  be  entirely 
withheld.  Should  insects  attack 
this  species,  they  must  at  once  be  cleared,  as  such  weak  growers 
are  soon  paralysed  by  their  presence. 
Laelia  elegans  Stelzneriana. 
This  is  a  fine  variety  in  the  way  of  Schilleriana,  but  slightly 
broader  in  all  its  parts.  The  colouring  is  a  bright  rose  on  the 
sepa's  and  petals,  the  lip  mauve,  with  a  deep  purple  blotch. 
Lrelia  elegans  is  one  of  the  most  useful  of  all  autumn  flowering 
Orchids,  and  more  variable  than  even  Cattleya  Mossise.  Easily 
grown,  and  seldom  missing  a  season  in  flowering,  it  should  be 
grown  by  all  orchidists.  Fairly  large  pots,  a  rough,  open  com¬ 
post,  and  good  light  are  necessary.  In  summer  ample  moisture, 
and  in  winter  only  sufficient  to  prevent  shrivelling,  is  necessary, 
with  a  fairly  moist  atmosphere  always.  Strictly  speaking,  it 
is  a  bigeneric  hybrid,  Lselio-Cattleya,  but-  the  name  we  use  is 
more  familiar. 
Dendrobium  blgibbum. 
Bright  and  telling  in  all  its  forms,  this  pretty  Dendrobe  has 
always  been  popular.  The  flowers  occur  at  a  dull  time,  and  are 
plentifully  produced.  It  likes  a  high  and  very  moist  temperature, 
with  ample  light  reaching  it  from  all  sides,  and  as  the  roots  are  i 
not  ambitious  in  pushing  a  long  way  from  the  growth,  small 
pans  suspended  near  the  roof  glass,  form  a.  convenient  mode  of 
culture.  Severe,  drying,  and  a  low  winter  temperature  is  dis¬ 
tasteful  to  this  as  to  all  Australian  species. — H.  R.  R. 
- «♦#.* - 
More  About  Apples. 
Mr.  Brotherston  is  probably  correct  in  saying  that  horticul¬ 
tural  literature  is  largely  composed  of  reiteration,  “  repeating 
ourselves,  more  frequently  repeated  by  others,  or  repeat  them.” 
There  is  some  consolation,  however,  that  the  same  reiteration 
occurs  with  others  as  with  gardening  literature.  I  do  not  see 
how  it  is  possib'e  that  it  can  be  otherwise,  for  in  the  treatment 
of  the  same  subject  by  so  many  writers,  how  can  extreme 
originality  obtain?  Mr.  Brotherston, 
however,  may  fairly  claim  to  have 
handled  his  subject  with  his  usual 
good  and  refreshing  style,  and  one 
■would  scarcely  tire  of  his  communica¬ 
tions,  where  they  are  evolved  out  of 
Apple  cultivation,  their  gathering, 
and  storage. 
Though  there  is  no  doubt  a  great 
loss  of  fruit  from  careless  gathering, 
there  is  an  appreciable  loss  from 
other  causes.  The  nature  of  the  soil 
has  a  deal  of  influence  on  the  good  or 
indifferent  keeping  of  the  fruit,  so 
has  district,  and  the  store  in  which 
it  is  kept  after  being  gathered. 
Then,  too,  the  season  has  a  control 
over  the  destinies  of  the  winter  fruit 
store.  How  can  it  be  otherwise  when 
the  soil  in  which  the  roots  are  located 
becomes  as  dry  as  a  billiard-table, 
and  almost  as  hard,  and  there  is 
neither  rain  nor  water  wherewith  to 
moisten  it,  while  the  fruit  still  hangs 
on  the  trees  ?  If  this  was  the  case  in 
occasional  years,  so  much  might  not 
be  said  or  felt,  but  when  these  dry 
seasons  become  so  oft-repeated  then 
the  influence  of  them  must  be  felt  in 
some  way,  or  at  some  time. 
It  is  really  remarkable  how  trees 
endure  this  dry  environment  without 
showing  distress  in  the  leaves  and 
crops ;  but  here — though  there  is 
such  an  absence  of  land-moisture — 
the  trees  appear  in  the  best  of  health, 
and  they  fruit,  freely  and  regularly 
too.  Our  fruit  room  occupies  a  dis¬ 
tinctly  cool  aspect,  and  the  internal 
temperature  is  uniform  ;  but,  despite 
this  there  is  a  great  loss  of  fruit  from 
causes  that  can  only  be  attributable 
to  climatic  conditions. 
Nothing  less  could  be  expected  if 
the  means  of  gathering  such  as  that 
complained  of  by  Mr.  Brotherston 
were  practised — namely,  shaking  or 
knocking  off  the  fruits,  and  then 
gathering  it  from  the  ground. 
Viciousness  is  not  generally  an  apt 
illustration  of  a  practice  in  garden  work  ;  but  there  seems  a 
justification  for  it  when  (as  Mr.  Brotherston  says)  it  comes  under 
his  own  observation.  There  are  some  kinds  even  with  us  that 
will  keep  well,  the  latest  sorts  in  particular,  but  many  good 
early  and  maincrop  varieties  do  not  live  out  half  the  time  they 
do  elsewhere.  It  is  a  bad  practice  to  pull  fruits  forcibly  from 
the  trees ;  it  is  better  to  lose  a  portion  of  the  crop  by  falling, 
than  to  spoil  the  whole  by  too  early  gathering.  It  is  surprising 
sometimes  to  find  how  long  Apples  will  keep  after  they  have 
fallen  on  the  soil,  even  when  the  skin  is  somewhat  bruised — there 
cannot  be  any  dependance  placed  on  their  keeping  when  the  skin 
is  bruised,  but  so  it  happens  sometimes,  and  especially  with  the 
hard-skinned  late-keeping  varieties. 
The  climate  of  Scotland  is  very  different  from  that  we  are 
accustomed  to  in  the  western  counties  of  England.  In  some  por¬ 
tions  of  Scotland,  at  least,  the  season  is  a  full  month  later  than 
here,  which  would  materially  favour  later  gathering  and  longer 
keeping  of  the  fruit.  It  is  absolutely  impossible  for  me  to  keep 
Bramleys  or  Alfriston  into  the  month  of  May,  whether  carefully 
hand-picked  or  gathered  up  in  a  fallen  state.  Birds  are  a  terror 
to  the  fallen  Apple.  Unless  they  are  gathered  up  often,  they 
are  quickly  sampled  by  blackbirds  and  thrushes. 
