November  6,  1902. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AS D  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
421 
Odontoglossum  crispo-Harry anum  var.  delicata. 
The  flowers  are  large,  with  pale  coloured  segments,  white 
■at  the  base  and  heavily  spotted  with  chocolate  colour;  the  lip 
is  large  and  white  tipped,  also  speckled  and  marked  with  biown. 
and  has  a  yellow  blotch  on  the  claw.  A  First  Class  Certificate 
was  accorded  to  this  novelty  when  Baron  Sir  Henry  Schioder, 
The  Dell,  Egham,  staged  a  plant  bearing  six  flowers,  at  the 
meeting  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  on  October  20. 
The  Week's  Cultural  Notes. 
In  preparing  Orchids  for  their  winter’s  rest  the  mistake  of 
■drying  them  off  too  quickly  is  often  made.  Tp  properly  with* 
stand  the  drying  process  necessary  to  their  culture  pseudo-bulbous 
Orchids  have  to  store  up  plenty  of  nutriment,  and  the  drying 
must  come  afterwards.  As  long  as  the  roots,  then,  are  sufficiently 
active  to  take  up  moisture 
the  moisture  must  be  sup¬ 
plied.  Naturally  the  water 
supply  will  be  limited  now, 
because  the  atmospheric 
•conditions  now  obtaining 
are  not  conducive  to  a  rapid 
drying.  Nor  are  the  roots 
active  enough  to*  take  a  full 
supply,  but  to  dry  the 
plants  altogether  directly 
growth  ceases  means  de¬ 
priving  the  psendo-bulbs  of 
a  certain  amount  of  stamina 
that  they  will  need  later. 
It  is  far  better  to  over- 
water  a  little  now  and  keep 
the  plants  drier  in  spring, 
as  the  plants  are  hard  now. 
whereas  in  spring  there  are 
tender  young  growths  that 
■damp  off  easily  with  any 
excess  of  moisture.  And  in 
plants  that  shrivel  badly  in 
winter  the  young  growths 
that  do  start  are  weakly  to 
oegin  with,  while  those  from 
stout  plump  bulbs  are 
strong  and  well  able  to  take 
care  of  themselves.  The 
shrinkage  often  noted  in 
pseudo-bulbous  Orchids  in 
winter  may  to  a  great  ex¬ 
tent  be  lessened  by  atten¬ 
tion  to  their  wants  now. 
Distichous-leaved  kinds, 
on  the  other  hand,  like 
Phalsenopsis,  Aerides,  Sac- 
colabium,  and  Vandas  art- 
taking  very  little  moisture 
now.  If  the  plants  are  ex¬ 
amined  the  late  growing 
points  of  the  roots  will,  in 
the  majority  of  cases,  be 
Crocus  hyemalis. 
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Odontoglossum  crispo=  Uarryanum  var.  delicata. 
found  to  have  clouded  over. 
There  is  not  the  same  soft  spongy,  appearance  there  was  a 
month  or  so  ago.  This  indicates  a  desire  tO'  rest  on  the  part  of  the 
plants,  and  beyond  an  occasional  moistening  to  prevent  the 
leaves  becoming  soft  and  shrivelled,  water  will  do  more  harm 
than  good. 
Especially  is  this  the  case  with  regard  to  the  Moth  Orchids. 
Roots  and  leaves  are  exceptionally  sensitive,  and  both  are  now 
able  to  draw  from  the  atmosphere  nearly  all  the  moisture  they 
require.  The  leaves  in  particular  should  not  have  a  drop  of 
water  near  them  now,  as  it  runs  down  to  the  junction  of  stem 
and  leaf  and  rots  the  latter  at  the  axil.  The  larger  growing 
members  of  this  section,  such  as  Vandas  of  the  tricolor  and  suavis 
group,  large  Angraecums  like  A.  eburneum  and  A.  sesquipedale, 
Aerides  odoratum  and  similar  subjects,  are  not  so*  particular. 
Their  roots  are  stronger,  and  the  nature  of  the  leaf  is  more 
adapted  to  throwing  off  moisture,  but  even  here  only  enough  to 
keep  them  plump  and  in  good  condition  need  be  given. — H.  R.  R. 
Less  useful  in  the  garden  than  many  of  its  congeners,  the 
winter-flowering  Crocus  hyemalis  may  be  said  to  be  emphatically 
a  flower  for  the  Crocus  lover  who  is  prepared  to  devote  a  little 
extra  care  to  secure  its  flowers.  This  is  due  to  their  appearance 
in  midwinter,  a  time  when  we  have  not  only  stormy  weather  as 
a  rule,  but  also  short  days  with  only  a  brief  spell  of  sunshine. 
The  former  evil  may  be  remedied  by  the  aid  of  a  glass  or  hand- 
light  over  the  flowers,  but  the  latter  cannot  be  overcome  in  our 
climate.  On  the  other  hand,  the  flowers  last  longer  than  if  they 
had  daily  sunshine,  always  provided  that  they  are  properly  pro¬ 
tected.  Thus  such  a  Crocus  as  C.  hyemalis  is  also  one  for  the 
amateur  with  an  unheated  or  cool  greenhouse  or  frame,  as  the 
corms  may  be  potted,  though  they  must  be  kept  out  of  the  reach 
of  mice,  which  are  serious  enemies  to  the  Crocus  where  they  are 
rife.  In  light,  sandy  soil  it  will  do  well,  and.  while  some  recom¬ 
mend  shallower  planting,  I  should  not  think  of  keeping  the 
tops  of  the  corms  less  than  an  inch  beneath  the  surface,  and  I 
should  prefer  a  depth  of  two  inches  when  cultivated  in  the  open 
ground. 
Crocus  hyemalis  is  in  itself  a  pleasing  although  not  a  showy 
species,  its  claims  upon  our  notice  lying  mainly  in  its  time  of 
blooming  and  in  the  quiet 
and  simple  beauty  of  its 
delicate  flowers.  Its  floral 
segments  are  thin  in  sub¬ 
stance,  which  makes  the 
glass  covering  in  winter  all 
the  more  necessary.  They 
are  yellow  at  the  throat  and 
are  white,  veined  with 
purple  lines  towards  the 
base.  The  handsome  variety 
Foxi  has,  according  to  Mr. 
Maw,  the  outer  segments 
“freckled  and  suffused  with 
purple,”  but  this  is  not  in¬ 
variably  the  case,  and  in¬ 
dividual  flowers  have  fre¬ 
quently  the  same  exterior 
colouring  as  the  type.  The 
anthers,  filaments,  and  style 
are  all  orange,  except  in  the 
variety  Foxi,  which  has 
black  anthers,  a  feature 
which  adds  greatly  to  the 
beauty  of  this  form.  The 
flowers  are  of  medium  size, 
and  are  very  pretty  and  at¬ 
tractive  when  open  in  the 
sun. 
Crocus  hyemalis  has  only 
a  limited  range  in  its  native 
habitats,  this  being  confined 
to  Palestine  and  the  Syrian 
border,  and  the  variety 
Foxi  was  sent  originally 
from  near  Jericho. 
It  appears  rather  remark¬ 
able  that  the  typical  C. 
hyemalis  is  but  rarely  found 
in  cultivation,  while  the 
variety  Foxi  is  the  one 
usually  obtained  if  C. 
hyemalis  is  ordered.  I 
have  had  it  from  several 
sources,  both  here  and  on 
the  Continent,  and  always 
with  the  same  result — that  Foxi  was  sent.  I  have,  however, 
this  autumn  an  importation  from  the  north  of  Asia,  and  hope 
that  this  may  turn  out  the  typical  form,  although  the  other  is 
perhaps  the  more  distinct  and  attractive  of  the  two. — S.  Aenott. 
Transplanting  the  Paeony. 
In  nursery  catalogues  the  advice  is  sometimes  given  to  trans¬ 
plant  the  Preony  in  autumn  in  preference  to  spring;  and  this  is 
very  good  advice,  if  one  wants  flowers.  Taken  up  in  the  usual 
way  in  spring  and  reset,  the  plants  seldom  bloom  until  the  follow¬ 
ing  year.  The  Preony  starts  to  grow  very  early  in  spring,  and 
this  and  the  loss  of  some  roots  in  digging  check  it  so  much  that 
it  rarely  flowers  as  it  would  have  done  if  undisturbed.  If  of 
flowering  age,  and  but  little  disturbed  in  the  operation,  fa'l 
planting  will  net  hinder  its  blooming. 
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