210 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
CirAucoAr>  for  urchios. 
“  J.  T.  15.”  has  put  his  ([iiery  in  a  difl'ererit  form  to  that  answered 
in  till!  (.nlitorial  footnote  on  pa,i;e  103.  '1  he  question  then  was,  “  Is 
charcoal  absolutely  necessary?”  and  he  proceeded  to  answer  it  by 
saying  he  had  grown  Orchids  well  without  its  aid.  But  his  second 
(juery  was  answered  in  the  footnote  referred  to  before  he  put  it.  Does 
charcoal  do  any  good  ?  To  quote  from  the  footnote,  “  It  takes  up 
moisture  easily,  and  gives  it  off  again  to  the  root  spongioles,  while 
the  roots  show  their  liking  to  it  by  clinging  to  it  firmly.”  Very 
good  ;  we  must  concede  tliat  charcoal  of  good  quality  is  useful. 
Bad  charcoal  is  like  bad  peat  or  moss  or  bad  butter,  or  any  other 
commodity.  But  we  must  not  for  this  rca.son  run  down  these 
materials  as  a  whole. 
llespecting  “  .1.  T.  B.’s  ”  argument  as  to  decayed  charcoal,  he  has 
not  ])roved  that  this  was  the  cause  of  the  roots  dying.  The  compost 
must  be  in  a  bad  way  when  charcoal  decays  in  it,  and  this  would 
sudiciently  account  for  the  death  of  the  roots.  1  am  quite  at  one  with 
“.).  d’.  B.”  rcs|)ecting  the  need  of  attention  to  small  matters,  and  the 
habit  of  olwervation  of  these,  which  “  .J.  d’.  B.”  has  evidently  firactiscd 
to  a  large  extent,  is  also  to  be  commended.  J  hope  that  other  Orchid 
growing  readers  will  follow  his  lead,  and  let  us  hear  of  their  treatment 
through  these  ])ages,  and  that  “  J.  T.  B.”  will  take  my  short  criticism 
in  tlie  spirit  it  is  intended — t.c.,  with  a  view  to  find  out  the  real 
truth.— 11.  B.  B. 
Orchtd.s  at  WoonnATOH,  ]{eioate. 
"When  1  saw  very  recently  the  most  beautiful  show  of  Orchids,  but 
cs])ecially  of  Dendrobiums,  Mr.  T.  1>.  Haywood  has  at  his  charming 
residence,  I  could  but  wish  that  Mr.  Walter,  the  able  grower,  hail 
permission  to  set  the  splendid  collection  of  these  up  at  the  Drill 
Hall,  where  hundreds  could  see  them,  rather  than  only  the  very  few 
jirivileged  to  visit  them  at  Woodhatch.  Not  only  is  there  a  tine  and 
varied  collection,  but  the  plants  indicate  culture  and  care,  the  highest 
order  of  e.xcellence — indeed  could  not  be  excelled.  What  huge  jiieces 
of  1).  nobile,  grand  plants  from  3  to  3.}  feet  through,  literally  masses 
of  bloom  ;  then  what  a  show  of  the  fine  old  Wardianum  in  variety,  all 
so  beautiful,  so  varied  in  markings,  yet  each  one  having  the  dominant 
characteristics  of  large  llowcrs,  tipped  sepals,  and  intense  orange 
coloured  lips. 
'file  Woodhatch  form  of  D.  Ainsworthi  in  numerous  plants  is  a 
singularly  attractive  one,  and  the  entire  stock  iiractically  is  here. 
Beautiful  indeed  are  several  plants  of  D.  splendidura  grandiflorum,  and 
still  richer  in  colour  are  D.  nobile  nobilius,  and  the  intensely  lined  nobile 
Sanderiannm.  Very  rich-coloured  also  is  nobile  roseum.  D.  Findlay- 
anum  is  a  lovely  variety  grown  in  baskets  ;  and  singularly  jiure,  with 
markings  of  the  clearest,  is  1).  nobile  Ame.siaj.  But  there  are  many 
others,  and  some  good  seedlings,  with  about  150  promising  ones  in 
various  stages  of  growth  yet  to  flower.  Phalsenopsis  grandiflora  is 
in  grand  form,  so  also  is  Schilleriana ;  and  Masdevallia  tovarensis, 
witti  small  white  spathes,  is  in  great  abundance.  But  the  collection 
is  a  largo  one,  and  is  well  worthy  of  a  special  visit. — A.  D. 
Dendrouium  noiule. 
This  old  and  useful  jilant  will  now,  in  many  cases,  be  making  a 
brave  show,  and  where  a  fair  number  of  plants  is  grown  there  is  nothing 
that  lends  itself  with  better  eilect  to  any  use  it  may  be  put  to.  The 
cultivation  is  of  the  simplest,  and  it  is  to  be  found  growing  in  almost 
all  kinds  of  positions  and  composts  ;  but,  like  everything  else,  it  amply 
repays  any  attention  it  may  receive  from  the  cultivator. 
The  cardinal  points  in  the  cultivation  of  D.  nobile  are  abundance  of. 
heat  and  moisture  when  in  active  growth,  and  after  they  have  linisbed 
a  loner  rest  in  a  dry  house  that  does  not  go  much  below  50'’.  Care 
must  be  taken  that  the  plant  is  not  allowed  to  shrivel,  neither  must  it  be 
allowed  to  get  soddened,  or  the  roots  will  decay;  keep  everything 
scruptdously  clean  and  the  compost  sweet,  as  no  plant  I  know  detests 
anything  .sour  about  their  roots  more  than  Dendrobiums.  Those  that 
require  top-dressing,  repotting,  or  reba.sketing  should  have  attention  as 
soon  as  they  pass  out  of  flower.  The  compost  used  may  consist  of  the 
best  peat  fibre,  with  all  the  small  particles  taken  out,  mixed  with  nearly 
as  much  live  sphagnum  moss,  with  the  addition  of  some  pieces  of 
broken  crock  or  bricks.  Creat  care  must  be  taken  after  a  plant  has 
been  repotted  not  to  give  more  water  than  is  really  necessary  to 
prevent  shrivelling,  until  the  roots  are  seen  to  be  running  freely,  and 
the  young  growths  pushing  strongly,  or  they  are  apt  to  turn  black 
and  decay. 
There  are  many  varieties,  all  of  which  are  beautiful ;  but  were  I 
asked  to  name  a  few  of  the  best,  I  should  select  amongst  dark 
varieties  D.  nobile  nobilius,  which  is  as  yet  without  a  rival  ;  D.  n, 
Sanderiannm,  D.  n.  llarrisi,  D.  n.  (Jooksoni,  and  the  old  n.  pendulum 
and  Tollianiurn;  with  such  light  varieties  as  D.  n.  Amesim,  n.  album, 
n.  albiflorum,  n.  Ballianum,  and  n,  Murrhinnianum.  There  are  many 
intermediate  shades  between  the  deep  richne.ss  of  D.  n.  nobilius  and 
the  jiearly  whiteness  of  D.  n.  Amesia). — J.  Barker,  llessh. 
.'March  10,  189  . 
'  ft 
rUUNUS  I’ERSICA  VULGARIS  ALP, A  FL.-I’L. 
'J’he  value  of  the  many  forms  of  Prunus  for  the  adornment  of  borders 
of  some  width,  and  of  shrubberies,  is  becoming  more  and  more  apparent 
every  year.  During  the  early  spring  trees,  young  or  old,  make  such  a 
display  as  certainly  cannot  be  excelled,  if  even  it  can  be  equalled.  Then,. 
Pig.  5.3. — Prunus  persica  vulgaris  alra  flore-pleno. 
too,  they  are  suitable  alike  for  the  small  or  the  large  garden  in  fact,  it 
is  difficult  to  conceive  where  they  would  be  really  out  of  place.  At  the 
meeting  of  the  Committees  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  which  was 
held  on  February  8th,  Messrs.  W.  Paul  &  Son,  Waltham  Cross,  received 
a  first-class  certificate  for  Prunus  persica  vulgaris  alba  flore-pleno,  of 
which  a  spray  is  shown  in  the  woodcut  (fig.  53).  It  is  one  of  the 
hundsemest  we  have  seen,  and  must,  with  its  semi  double  pure  white 
flowers,  become  an  object  of  universal  admiration.  The  widespread 
appreciation  that  is  accorded  to  P.  Pissardi  on  account  of  its  chastely 
beautiful  flowers  and  striking  leafage  is  thoroughly  deserved.  Thit 
popularity  is  our  reason  for  reproducing  (fig.  54)  a  picture  which, 
though  it  shows  the  profusion  of  flowers,  fails  to  depict  the  beauty  of 
the  leaves.  _ 
PEAS. 
In  the  estimation  of  many  people  Peas  are^  the  daintiest  of 
vegetables.  There  can  be  no  question  about  their  wholesomeness, 
and  it  is  possible  that  a  great  percentage  of  persons,  if  asked  which, 
was  their  favourite  vegetable,  wmuld  answer.  Green  Peas.  Irom 
scarcely  any  garden  in  the  season  are  Peas  absent,  and  I  think 
gardeners  often  receive  instructions  to  have  as  prolonged  a  supply  as 
possible. 
To  obtain  produce  of  the  highest  quality  tne  best  of  cultivation 
must  be  given,  or  success  cannot  possibly  be  achieved.  It  is  usual. 
