J^\^ary  25,  19C4.  JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
157 
liaello-cattleya  Myra  var  Charlesworthi, 
This  brilliant  little  orchid,  which  bears  a  profusion  of  its 
lovely  rich  yellow  flowers,  has  been  greatly  admired  by  visitors 
to  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  Drill  Hall  exhibitions  on 
the  last  two  occasions.  The  exhibitors  have  been  Messrs.  Charles- 
worth  and  Co.,  of  Heaton,  Bradford,  who  were  able  to  display 
a  number  of  exceedingly  well  flowered  plants.  The  parentage  is 
Lselia  flava  and  Cattleya  Trianse,  and  it  received  an  award  of 
merit  on  the  26th  of  January.  The  sepals  and  petals  are  rich 
chrome  yellow,  and  the  lip  is  dark  crimson  (or  ruby-purple),  with 
yolk-coloured  tube.  Its  size  and  form,  as  Mr.  Shayler’s  drawing 
shows,  is  intermediate  between  the  two  parents.  It  is  an  excel¬ 
lent  hybrid. 
Cultural  Notes  :  Masdevallias,  Chysis. 
Masdevallias  of  the  Chimsera  section  and  a  number  of  the 
small  growing  forms  will  need  attention  to  the  roots  now.  They 
are,  comparatively  speaking,  easy  to  grow  in  a  shady,  moist  house, 
provided  the  roots  are  in  good  order  and  running  in  a  sweet, 
well  divided  compost;  but  in  a  close  or  sour  medium  the  roots 
die  off  wholesale  and  the  plants  soon  perish.  Yet  they  dislike 
being  disturbed,  and  only  in  cases  where  the  centre  of  the  mass 
is  in  really  bad  condition  should  they  be  shaken  right  out,  a 
little  picking  away  of  the  worst  of  the  material  answering  in 
most  cases. 
When  they  have  to  be  shaken  out  it  is  as  well  to  be  thorough 
with  it  and  cut  away  every  bit  of  dead  root,  retaining  only  the 
healthy  portions.  They  may  then  be  washed  in  tepid  water, 
laid  out  on  a  shelf  or  stage  to  dry  a  little,  and  then  re-basketed 
or  potted  as  the  case  demands.  All  those  having  pendant  scapes, 
like  M.  Backhousiana,  should  bo  basketed,  but  small,  erect  flower¬ 
ing  types  are  better  in  small  pots  or  pans.  In  every  case 
thorough  drainage  is  absolutely  necessary,  quite  two-thirds  of 
the  depth  of  the  pot  being  filled  wdth  crocks,  sweet,  clean 
sphagnum  points  and  peat  fibre  being  the  best  compost. 
Many  other  plants  will  need  repotting  now',  or  shortly,  notably 
the  terrestrial  class  of  pseudo-bulbous  orchids,  of  which  C^cnoches 
chlorochilon,  “The  Swan  Orchid,”  Chysis  bractesceus,  Catasetums 
and  Spathoglottis  of  sorts  are  well  known  examples.  The.se  all 
like  a  good  proportion  of  sound  fibry  loam  in  the  compost,  and 
should  be  repotted  soon  after  growth  commences.  In  the  case 
of  the  Sw'an  Orchid  most  of  the  old  roots  w'ill  be  found  dead  at 
repotting  time,  so  may  be  removed,  all  excepting  an  inch  or  two, 
which  may  be  left  to  steady  the  plant. 
The  roots  of  Chysis  are  more  persistent,  and  injury  to  them 
must  he  carefully  guarded  against.  The  singular  scrambling 
habit  of  the  plant  fits  it  for  basket  culture,  and  the  roots  have 
a  strong  affinity  for  wood.  Tiie  Spathoglottises  are  moisture- 
loving  subjects,  and  should  be  potted  just  as  ordinary  plants 
are,  w'ith  the  surface  of  the  compost  a  good  half-inch  below  the 
rims  of  the  pots.  Just  after  repotting  less  water  is,  of  course, 
necessary,  but  the  plants  mu.st  not  be  really  dry.  These  plants 
should  be  grown  near  the  light,  but  on  a  cool,  moist  bottom  of 
ashes  or  coke. — H.  R.  R. 
Book  Notices. 
Mealy  Bugs  and  Scale  Insects.’ 
The  greatest  foes  to  our  gardens  amongst  the  insects  are  not 
tho.se  of  large  size,  and  hence  it  is  that  the  Hemipterous  Order 
contains  more  injurious  species  than  any  other.  Hero  is  the 
disagreeable  cuckoo-spit,  Cercopis,  and  other  suckers  of  sap, 
especially  the  Aphis  and  Coccus,  species  of  insidious  habit  ancl 
rapid  multiplication. 
Old  books  upon  garden  pests  make  little  reference  to  these 
tiny  insects,  which  has  led  to  the  supposition  that  they  have 
been  more  troublesome  of  late  years.  Possibly  the  general 
mildness  of  our  winters  has  favoured  the  increa.se  of  some,  but 
there  was  ignorance  prevalent  with  regard  to  their  habits  and 
the  harm  they  do.  Gardeners  had  no  chance  to  refer  to  such  a 
♦  “Monograph  of  the  British  Coccitlse,”  by  Robt.  Newsteacl.  Vol.  II. 
London  ;  Printed  for  the  Ray  .Society. 
work  as  Mr.  Newstead’s  monograph  of  the  Coccidte,  the  second 
and  completing  volume  of  w'hich  is  before  us.  This  is  scarcely 
a  book  the  gardener  could  be  expected  to  buy,  yet  a  copy 
should  be  in  each  of  those  local  libraries  which  are  now  general 
and  accessible  to  gardeners  as  well  as  other  people.  The  two 
volumes  represent  fourteen  years’  diligent  research,  and  give  us 
a  complete  view  of  the  Coccid  fauna  of  this  country.  Every 
effort  has  been  made  to  ensure  accuracy,  and  the  history  of  each 
species  is  carefully  worked  out.  Coloured  illu.strations  accom¬ 
pany  the  text,  which  are  admirably  drawn,  and  bring  the  life- 
history  of  the  species  shown  into  view. 
Insects  such  as  the  aphis  and  coccus  are  likely  to  be  trans¬ 
formed  with  plants  arriving  here  from  other  countries,  but  as 
a  matter  of  fact  very  few  of  the  former  have  migrated  and  got 
established.  With  Coccus  it  is  different.  We  have  eighty-eight 
British  sjjecies.  Out  of  this  number  fifty-one  live  chiefly  under 
glass,  and  have  undoubtedly  come  from  abroad.  Part  of  these 
aliens  have  been  re.sidents  for  some  time,  the  bulk  arrived  during 
the  last  fifteen  or  twenty  years.  The  most  destructive  species, 
and  one  difficult  to  eradicate,  where  it  has  established  itself,  is 
certainly  Leucanium  Persicaj,  very  partial  to  the  Rose,  Nec¬ 
tarine,  and  Peach  under  glass,  occasionally  appearing  in  small 
numbers  out  of  doors.  Another  common  species,  rather  hardier, 
is  L.  hesperidum,  frequent  on  Holly,  Ivy,  and  Laurel,  also  on 
various  species  in  liomses.  Pulvinaris  Ribesise  seems  to  be 
increasing  as  an  enemy  of  the  Currant,  especially  the  black; 
the  females  have  a  remarkable  power  of  secreting  honeydew. 
(To  be  continued.) 
“South  African  Flowering  Plants.’’^ 
The  author  is  widely  known  as  a  botapist  Avhose  discourses 
and  writings  are  exceedingly  lucid  and  easily  comprehensible. 
In  this  little  book  he  tells  us  a  comsiderable  amount  about  the 
flora  of  South  Africa,  and  the  second  half  of  the  book  is  devoted 
to  a  classification  of  the  natural  orders  of  the  plants  found  in 
that  dry  country.  Mr.  Henslow  has  long  studied  the  subject 
of  adaptation  by  plants  to  their  surroundings;  indeed,  some  of 
his  best-remembered  lectures  are  on  this  phase  of-  botany.  He 
shows  that  South  African  plants  have  adapted  themselves  to  the 
dryness  by  means  of  fleshy  stems  or  bulbs  or  rootstocks ;  or, 
on  the  other  hand,  by  a  xerophytic  habit,  i.e-,  a  hard  growth 
like  that  of  the  Ericaceee,  which  does  not  allow  much  transpira- 
tion. 
The  opening  chapter  is  devoted  to  a  very  full  description  of 
the  entire  outer  and  inner  structure  of  a  typical  plant  of  the 
La^lio-Cattleya  x  Myra  Charlesworthi, 
flora — Oxali.s  cernua — to  give  the  beginner  a  general  knowledge 
of  ijlant  structure  in  its  main  features.  Other  chapters  are  : 
Methods  of  pollination,  the  stems  and  foliage  of  plants,  origin 
of  the  veldt  and  Karroo  plants,  and  structure  of  flowers,  which 
bring  us  to  the  second  half  of  the  book.  It  is  illustrated 
throughout,  and  will  prove  useful. 
I  “South  African  Flowering  Plants,”  for  the  use  of  beginners,  student.s, 
and  teachers,  by  Rev.  Prof.  Geo.  Henslow,  M.A.,  &-c.  Longmans,  Green  and  Co. 
30.  Paternoster  Row,  Loudon,  1903.  PiiceS'-. 
