March  26,  1903. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
2C5 
Cattleya  x  Enid  magnifica. 
C'attleya  x  Enid,  itself  a  noble  flower  of  great  beauty,  is  com¬ 
pletely  eclipsed  in  point  of  grace  and  variety  by  this  fresh  form 
which  we  hero  figure  from  a  drawing  made  by  Mr.  Geo.  Shayler  in 
the  Drill  Hall.  The  parents  of  C.  x  Enid  are  C.  Warscewiczi 
(C.  gigas)  and  C.  Moasiae,  and  the  neAV  C.  x  magnifica  differs 
from  the  hybrid  type  in  having  much  more  beautifully  frilled 
edges  to  the  sepals,  petals,  and  lip.  It  was  shown  by  Messrs. 
Charlesworth  and  Co.,  of  Heaton,  riradford,  at  the  Royal  Horti¬ 
cultural  Society’s  meeting  on  March  10,  when  the  Orchid  Com¬ 
mittee  awarded  a  first-class  certificate.  We  have  described  it  as 
a  most  beautiful  and  finely  turned  flower,  the  handsome  velvety- 
purple  lip  being  of  good  size,  and  remarkably  fringed  and 
crimpled ;  this  is-  a  striking  feature.  The  wavy  petals  are  arched 
very  prettily,  and  are  also  fringed.  They  are  coloured  rose- 
mauve. 
Disa  grandiflora. 
mens.  It  is  a  well  known  fact  among  growers  that  plants  so 
obtained  are  healthier  and  grow  much  more  freely  than  others 
obtained  from  divisions  of  the  old  plants.  This  is  partly  on 
account  of  their  perfect  freedom  from  insects,  and  also  because 
every  part  of  the  plant,  root  and  stem,  is  fresh,  and  has  no  old 
or  decayed  material  about  it. 
Thunias  may  be  propagated  in  a  similar  but  even  simpler 
manner.  It  is  only  necensary  with  these  to  cut  the  stems  into 
lengths  of  about  Sin  and  to  insert  these  around  the  edges  of  pots 
previously  filled  with  a  rough  compost  of  peat,  loam  and 
sphagnum.  Leave  about  a  couple  of  inches  of  the  top  of  the 
“  cutting”  out  of  the  soil,  and  place  the  pots  at  once  in  a  brisk, 
moist  heat.  Beyond  slightly  moistening  the  compost  at  first 
watering  will  not  be  necessary  until  the  young  growths  show 
and  begin  to  push  roots  into  the  compost.  The  plants  will  not 
probably  be  large  enough  to  flower  the  first  year,  but  the  second 
season  will  make  fine  specimens. 
What  may  be  termed  a  more  natural  method  of  propagating 
these  species  is  to  remove  the  young  growths  that  frecpiently  form 
at  the  top  of  the  stems,  and  set  them  going  in  small  pots  on  their 
own  account.  But,  of  course,  a  limited  number  only  can  be 
obtained  in  this  way,  while  with  the  former  method  a  very  large 
stock  can  soon  be  worked  up.  Backbreaks  on.  pseudo-bulbous 
species,  and  small  stocky  side  pieces  from  the  stems  of  the  dis¬ 
tichous  leaved  kinds  may  also  be  potted  up  now,  making  healthy 
and  vigorous  young  stock  to  replace  any  old  specimens  that  may 
be  diseased  or  otherwise  useless. — H.  R.  R. 
Decorative  Subjects. 
Cattleya  x  Enid  magnifica. 
It  was  on  his  arrival  in  Cape  Colony  that  the  Colonial  Secre- 
tai-y  attained  his  first  vision  of  Di,sa  grandiflora  flourishing  in  its 
native  home.  It  is  the  most  beautiful  of  all  South  African 
Orchids.  This  wonderful  flower  is  locally  known  as  the  “  Pride  of 
the  Table  Mountain,”  where  it  mostly  grows.  It  is  to  be  found 
on  the  margins  of  streams,  on  ledges,  and  in  waterfalls,  and 
during  the  growing  season  it  flourishes  in  very  wet  and  spongy 
soil,  which  consists  of  peat,  sand,  and  sphagnum  moss.  As  the 
dry  season  progresses 
the  water  gradually 
recedes,  until  at  the 
flowering  time  the 
soil  is  almost  dry. 
This  gives  the  plant 
rest  until  the  wet 
weather  comes  round 
again. 
According  to  ex¬ 
perts,  the  Cape  Pen¬ 
insula  alone  contains 
10  genera,  and  over 
one  hundred  species, 
being  over  5.8  per 
cent,  of  the  flora  of 
the  whole  region . 
Kaffraria,  now  part 
of  the  Cape 
Colony,  is  blessed 
with  113  different 
species,  the  Orphry- 
dese  constituting  no 
less  than  93  per  cent, 
of  the  total  number 
of  the  Avestern  por¬ 
tion  of  the  colony. 
T  h  e  Dendtrobiums 
and  Phaleenopses  are 
also  found  in  great 
variety  in  South 
Africa. 
The  Week’s  Cultural 
Notes. 
The  lAropagation  of 
Orchids  is  not  so  ea.sy 
a  matter  as  the  pro¬ 
pagation  of  many 
other  families  of 
plants,  but  there 
are  many  species  that 
may  be  increased 
fairly  rapidly.  For 
instance  the  present 
is  a  good  time  to 
commence  operations  for  working  up  stock  of  Dendrobium  nobile 
and  similar  species.  Any  of  the  stems  that  have  floAvered  but 
are  not  shrivelled  or  old  may  be  cut  off  for  propagating.  Fill 
some  boxes  or  pans  AA'ith  crocks  tO'  Avithin  an  inch  or  so  of  the  rim 
and  cover  them  Avith  an  inch  of  living  sphagnum  moss.  Then  lay  the 
stems  flat  upon  this,  and  keep  all  moist  by  frequent  syringing. 
In  a  feAV  Aveeks  the  eyes  at  the  nodes  Avill  SAvell  and  eacla  form 
a  young  groAvth  Avhich  Avill  elongate,  and  by-and-by  produce  roots 
on  its  OAvn  account  ;  they  may  then  be  potted  singly  in  .small  pots, 
or  massed  seA^eral  together,  and  Avill  rapidly  make  fine  speci¬ 
There  is  no  doubt  that  light  and  graceful  foliage,  ta.stefully 
arranged,  is  a  most  important  part  of  a  decoration,  and  Avhen 
arranging  a  bunch  of  floAvers  or  filling  a  vase  one  is  often  Avithout 
the  necessary  foliage 
to  give  one’s  arrange¬ 
ments  the  finishing 
touch  of  grace  and 
beauty.  Few  think 
of  devoting  a  little 
time  to  the  selection 
and  cultivation  of  a 
fcAV  plants  for  this 
purpose  alone.  Bear- 
in  mind  that  most 
plants  produce  foli¬ 
age  of  their  own  that 
is  admirably  adapted 
to  shoAving  off  the 
floAversi  they  produce, 
there  are  yet  others 
Avhosefoliage  is  heavy, 
often  ugly,  and  un¬ 
suitable  for  decora¬ 
tive  purposes.  SAveet 
Peas,  Roses,  Carna¬ 
tions,  Lilyi  of  Valley, 
&c.,  ahvays  look  Avell 
amongst  their  OAvn 
foliage  Avhen  made 
up  intO'  any  arrange¬ 
ment.  One  cannot 
say  tho’  sapie  of 
Violets,  Cfiierarias, 
0  h  r  y  s  a  n  t  h  e  - 
mums,  Dahlias,  Pop¬ 
pies',  and  many 
others.  There  are  a 
feAV  plants  useful  for 
almost  all  purposes, 
and  none  more  so 
perhaps  than  the 
ordinary  Asparagus 
foliage,  and  a  small 
bed  of  it  should 
ahvays  be  reserved 
for  cutting.  It  is 
best  to  soAV  a  small 
patch  of  it  each  year, 
and  alloAV  it  to  re¬ 
remain  for  three  years.  By  doing  this  one  can  get  various 
lengths  of  young,  light,  feathery  foliage,  not  the  ordinary  coarse 
dark  green  one  gets  from  an  old  bed.  Gypsophila  paniculata, 
though  not  a  foliage,  is  invaluable  for  decorative  purposes. 
Scarcely  anything  in  our  gardens  equals  this  for  its  lightness. 
Eragrostis  elegaiis  (Love  Grass)  is  exceedingly  light,  useful  for 
bouquets,  &o.  Ho'i'deum  jubatum  (Squirrel-tail  Gras.s)  looks  well 
Aviien  groAvn  in  good  clumps,  and  is  one  of  the  best  for  cutting. 
Chrysurus  cynosuroidcs  bears  dense  golden  spikes,  having  a 
ragged  appearance. — J. 
