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JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER.  December  19,  1901. 
Cypripedium  X  Helena. 
This  is  one  of  Mr.  Robert  Tunstill’s  hybrids,  and,  as  will  be 
seen  from  Mr.  Shayler’s  sketch  of  it,  the  novelty  is  distinct  and 
very  beautiful.  One  of  the  parents  (C.  bellatulum)  has  exercised 
a  marked  influence  in  the  form  of  this  new  variety;  the  other 
parent,  probably  the  male,  was  C.  insigne  Chantini.  The  upper 
sepal  and  broad  petals  are  cream-white,  splendidly  marked  with 
purple ;  the  lip  is  of  a  waxy  vaseline  tinge,  covered  with  a  shade 
of  purple.  An  Award  of  Merit  was  accorded  to  Mr.  Timstill  (of 
Monkholme,  Burnley;  gardener,  Mr.  Balmforth)  by  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Society  on  Tuesday  November  26. 
The  Week’s  Cultural  Notes. 
.  When  the  deciduous  Calanthes  have  finished  flowering  there 
is  nothing  to  prevent  their  being  repotted  at  once.  The  roots 
are  dead  and  of  no  more  use  to  the  plant,  excepting  that  a  few 
may  be  cut  off  at  an  inch  or  two  in  length  and  left  to  hold  the 
pseudo-bulbs  in  position  after  potting.  First  of  all,  turn  them 
out  of  the  pots  and  divide  the  old  from  the  new  bulbs.  All  the 
latter  will,  of  course,  be  repotted  in  the  usual  way,  but  the 
former  may  be  reserved  and  laid  on  boxes  or  pots  of  loose 
material.  Any  that  push  new  growths — and  many  will  if  they 
aie  otherwise  healthy — may  be  potted,  and  if  they  do  not  flower 
the  first  year  they  will  make  flowering  plants  for  another  season. 
the  compost  for  these  useful  Orchids  may  consist  of  loam 
fibre  and  peat  in  equal  proportions,  with  a  little  chopped 
sphagnum  moss  added  and  plenty  of  finely  broken  crocks.  A 
little  very  coarse  silver  sand  may  do  no  harm  ;  but  the  fine  sand 
often  used  for  potting  is  worse  than  useless,  clogging  up  the 
compost  and  drainage  instead  of  keeping  it  open,  and  prevent- 
mg  that  free  access  of  air  that  is  so  necessary  to  the  roots  of  all 
Orclnde  no  matter  whether  terrestrial  or  epiphytal.  The  drainage 
i  °V .  hu' 3arefulIy  laid’  and  should  fill  not  less  than  half  the 
depth  of  the  pot. 
The  compost  line  should  be  just  above  the  base  of  the  bulbs- 
if  deeply  buried  the  young  shoots  may  never  see  daylight.  After 
pottnig  no  water  must  be  given,  but  the  pots  should  be  stood 
tL  ,!/,  u  dl7  shelf  m  a  warm  house  until  young  growth  starts, 
t  he  number  of  plants  m  a  pot  may  vary  from  1  in  a  3in  pot  to 
°irf ,  ;m.a  9l,n‘  Some  growers  add  manure  to  the  compost, 
crrmrth  rlnA  °f  C?UriSe’  an  incentive  to  strong  growth ;  but  strong 
mnf  pro j-fi 1  n0t  ah\ays  "lean  a  hargc  number  of  flowers,  and  a 
Y86  a,'Ui  well~nPened  pseudo-bulb  usually  produces 
much  finer-coloured  flowers  than  an  exceptionally  large  one. 
Rlthm£wkhllUmS  Sih°'ild  b-7  now  )lave  matured  their  bulbs,  and, 
n  irf  fhVi  7  ai7  heat  a?d  moisture-loving  plants,  a  steadying 
7?  °f  H  atmosphere  and  a  slight  drop  in  the  temperature  will 
anv  *  a?rla^  :'i  °,St  of,  ,the  h’endrobiums  will  be  at  rest,  but 
any  such  as  D.  chrysanthum,  and  in  some  cases  D.  album, 
!ilAiroeimakmgfneW  growth,  should  be  accommodated  with  a 
suitable  temperature,  there  is  no  need  to  excite  them  unduly 
but  the  growth  must  be  kept  on  the  move.  If  checked  now  but 
ibor+iTerS  be  Produced>  and  these  are  often  mis-shapen  and 
abortive,  and  the  plants  grow  again  unseasonably.— H.  R.  R. 
Cypripedlums  at  Cheltenham. 
cultivate  a  good  selection  of  Orchids  in  fairly 
large  numbers  are  never  without  a  few  or  many  attractive  species 
durhi JTh’e  bla t  Wltf°Ut  thei  akl  °f  CyPriPediums  the  display 
during  the  late  autumn  and  winter  months  would,  to  say  the 
least,  be  disapponitmg.  Not  only  are  new  and  very  valuable 
additions  being  made  every  year  to  the  lists  of  Cypripedium 
species  and  forms  available  for  the  enthusiast  who  is  both  ready 
and  willing  to  pay  £200  and  upwards  for  tiny  plants  that  could 
be  sent  by  letter-post,  but  abundance  of  good  and,  to  the 
inexperienced  eye,  nearly  as  beautiful,  varieties,  can  bo  had  at 
a  comparatively  small  outlay.  ’ 
Wlien  grown  and  flowered  in  masses,  or,  as  seen  at  Mr 
Cypher’s  Queens  Road  Nurseries,  Cheltenham,  Cypripediums— 
without  quite  rivalling  Cattleyas  for  effect— are  yet  most 
attractive,  and  the  more  they  are  examined  the  more  they 
gam  in  favour  with  the  observer.  When  out  of  flower 
Cypripediums  are  far  from  being  unsightly,  in  this  respect  com- 
panng  most  favourably  with  most  other  Orchids.  Nor  are  they 
difficult  to  cultivate  and  flower,  while  the  duration  of  the 
majority  of  the  blooms  is  almost  phenomenal,  the  individual 
flowers  of  the  msigne  group,  for  instance,  frequently  retaining 
their  freshness  for  fully  three  months.  g 
What  apparently  suits  the  majority  of  species  is  a  house 
sheltered  from  cold  winds  and  not  unduly  exposed  to  the  sun. 
Inis  admits  of  a  genial  heat,  and  a  slightly  moist  atmosphere 
being  maintained  without  the  expenditure  of  much  fire  heat  or 
the  necessity  for  frequently  damping  down  to  counteract  the 
otherwise  injurious  effects  of  excessive  fire  heat  and  currents  of 
dry  cold  air.  At  Mr.  Cypher’s  the  best  display  of  new  and  rare 
species  is  to  be  found  at  the  present  time  in  the  inside  com¬ 
partment  of  a  moderately  high  span-roofed  house,  this  having  a 
blank  wall  at  the  cold  end.  Here  there  is  a  grand  bank  of  well- 
grown  Cypripedium,  arranged  on  the  central  stagings  with  more 
on  the  benches  around. 
Conspicuous  among  these  are  a  group  of  yellow  forms  of 
C.  insigne,  the  truly  beautiful  and  most  valuable  C.  i.  Sanderse 
being  represented  by  eight  expanded  blooms,  these  standing 
out  pre-eminently  beautiful.  Other  and  less  expensive,  yet 
pleasing,  yellow  insignes  were  Ball,  Dorothy,  Ethel,  Ernesti, 
Statteriana,  and  aurea  marginata.  This  by  no  means  exhausts 
the  insigne  group  ;  such  grand  forms  as  Harefield  Hall,  magnifica, 
montanum,  montanum  aureum,  punctatum  violaceum,  and 
numerous  more  or  less  pleasing  variations  being  represented. 
The  Leeanum  group  is  among  the  most  beautiful  of  the  family, 
this  in  some  respects  eclipsing  the  insigne  section,  quite  the 
smallest  plants  producing  large,  handsome  flowers,  supported  by 
tall  wiry  stems.  Very  fine,  indeed,  is  the  display  of  the  Leeanum 
varieties,  and  healthier,  better-grown  plants  could  not  well  be 
found.  The  most  attractive  were  giganteum,  aureum,  aureum 
giganteum,  Cypheri,  superbum,  magnificum,  and  the  chaste  and 
beautiful  virginale.  Other  species  flowering  freely  and  of  great 
merit  were  C.  Pitcherianum  (Williams’  variety),  several  fine 
forms  of  C.  callosum,  the  beautiful  C.  Fascinator,  C.  nitens,  C. 
Harrissianum  superbum,  C.  Leonie,  C.  Arthurianum  (one  plant 
in  a  large  batch  of  the  latter  having  eight  blooms  expanded),  C. 
Charles  Canham  (with  the  same  number  of  blooms),  and  various 
others. 
In  addition  to  these  choicer  species  and  varieties,  Messrs. 
Cypher  also  cultivate  many  hundred  plants  of  the  ordinary  C. 
insigne,  principally  for  affording  cut  flowers  at  Christmas  or  a 
little  later,  and  a  grand  display  these  make,  too.  After  they 
have  made  their  new  growth  in  the  spring  these  large  batches 
are  transferred  to  frames  and  shallow  pits  for  the  summer, 
moving  them  into  houses  early  in  September,  and  under  this 
treatment  they  flower  abundantly. 
The  value  of  this  Cypripedium  for  conservatory,  greenhouse, 
and  room  decoration  about  midwinter  is  lost  sight  of  in  too  many 
private  gardens. 
In  connection  with  this  visit  of  mine  to  Cypher’s  Nurseries, 
I  should  like  also  to  mention  the  masses  of  Lselia  anceps,  which 
would  soon  be  at  their  best,  L.  anceps  alba  promising  to  have 
hundreds  of  lovely  flowers  open  for  Christmas,  while  Vanda 
coerulea,  Dendrobium  Ethel  (named  after  the  late  Mr.  Cypher’s 
grand-daughter),  and  the  “tail  end”  of  a  large  collection  of 
Dendrobium  Phalsenopsis  Schroderiana  also  attracted  atten¬ 
tion. — W.  I. 
- <*•*» - 
Forcing  Vegetables. 
Asparagus. 
The  best  method  of  forcing  Asparagus  is  to  place  the 
roots  on  a  hotbed  in  a  frame,  employing  those  not  less 
than  three  years  old.  A  plentiful  supply  of  roots  should  be 
at  hand,  as  they  are  no  further  use  after  forcing.  A  mixture 
of  manure  and  leaves  may  be  thrown  together  and  allowed 
to  heat,  turning  several  times.  From  a  bed  of  this,  in  a 
brick  frame  of  good  depth  or  build,  a  dung  bed  4ft  high  at 
back  and  3ft  in  front,  and  1ft  wider  than  frame  which  is 
available  to  place  upon  it. 
Place  the  materials  together  moderately  firm.  When 
the  heat,  after  rising,  has  subsided  to  80deg,  cover  the  bed 
with  3in  of  soil,  and  place  the  three-year-old  roots  of 
Asparagus  thickly  upon  it,  and  cover  to  the  depth  of  5in. 
The  soil  must  be  kept  moist  and  the  frame  closed.  An  open 
hotbed,  with  a  frame  on  top,  will  lose  its  heat  quickly, 
hence  fresh  linings  of  manure  will  be  requisite  so  as  to 
maintain  a  temperature  of  65deg.  In  the  absence  of  suit¬ 
able  facilities  for  early  forcing  in  frames  roots  can  be  in¬ 
duced  to  push  growth  in  boxes  placed  in  a  forcing  house  in 
a  temperature  of  65deg  to  70deg. 
Seakale. 
Successional  supplies  of  Seakale  roots  should  be  taken 
up  and  prepared ;  strong  thick  samples  with  bold  crowns 
are  always  suitable  for  forcing.  When  lifting  them,  cut  off 
the  slender  whip-like  roots,  as  they  are  no  benefit  in  forcing, 
but  form  admirable  materials  for  fresh  stock,  cutting  them 
into  lengths  of  6in,  with  a  level  top  and  a  sloping  base. 
Plunge  in  sand  or  soil  until  spring,  when  plant.  The  thick 
forcing  roots  must  be  placed  in  deep  pots  or  boxes,  and  sur¬ 
rounded  with  soil  to  the  crowns.  Cover  closely  with  in¬ 
verted  pots  or  boxes,  as  light  must  be  totally  excluded. 
Keep  the  soil  moist.  A  temperature  of  60deg  must  be 
afforded. — D.  S. 
