26 
JOUIiNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AXD  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
Janur,ry  14,  1904. 
branches  of  science  and  the  aids  capable  of  being  illustrated 
in  a  niateria|  way.  The  specimens  are  classified  in  two  series, 
one,  comprising  the  bulk  of  the  material,  being  arranged  for 
purposes  of  scientific  research  and  reference  in  laboratories  and 
storerooms,  to  which  students  are  freely  admitted ;  the  other, 
selected  ivith  regard  to  their  general  educational  value  and 
popular  interest,  and  accompanied  by  descriptive  labels,  being 
displayed  in  glass-covered  cases  in  the  public  halls.  The  dupli¬ 
cate  speciimens  not  required  for  exchanges  are  made  up  into  sets 
for  distribution  to  schools  and  colleges  throughout  the  country. 
Papers  descriptive  of  the  collections,  both  technical  and  popular, 
are  published  for  gratuitous  circulation  to  the  extent  of  three 
or  more  volumes  yearly,  and,  finally,  the  Museum  has  come  to 
be  regarded  as  a  sort  of  bureau  of  information  in  respect  to  all 
subjects  with  which  it  is  concerned,  even  in  the  remotest 
degree,  the  correspondence  which  this  involves  now  constituting 
one  of  its  heaviest  tasks.” 
These  two  Reports  are  really  divided  into  two  parts,  the  first 
giving  a  detailed  account  of  the  year’s  work  and  expenses,  in  the 
latter  case  even  down  to  the  hours  paid  for  “  one  cleaner,”  or 
“one  labourer,”  or  “one  office  boy.”  as  the  case  may  be.  ’The 
second  part  being  given  over  to*  pairers  by  specialists  and 
curators,  which  are  very  thoroughly  preparecl,  and  illustrated 
in  some  cases  by  seventy  or  eighty  beautiful  full-page  platevS, 
half-tone  and  coloured. 
In  the  1901  volume,  birds,  animals,  fishes,  and  various  tribes 
ot  Indians  are  numerously  figured,  as  well  as  textiles  and 
potters^  (in  colours)  of  the  American  Indians.  In  the  1902  Re¬ 
port  there  are  fewer  plates,  but  the  variety  of  subjects  discussed 
IS  greater. 
the  general  appendix  to  this  volume  we  find  articles  on 
The  Radio-acbivity  of  Matter  :  History  of  Cold,  and  the  Absolute 
Zero;  The  Progress  of  Geographical  Knowledge;  Volcanic  Erup- 
Hons  on  Martinique  and  St.  Vincent;  The  Discovery  of  the 
Future  (H  G.  Wells);  Craniology  of  Man  and  Anthropoid 
Apes:  Wild  Tribes  of  the  Malay  Peninsula;  The  P^-gmies  of  the 
Great  Congo  Forest  ;  The  Nile  Reservoir  Dam  at  Assuan; 
Problems  of  Heredity  and  Their  Solution  (W.  Bateson)-  and 
ether  papers. 
Each  volume  has  a  well  arranged  index. 
The  Early  Order  Sheet. 
The  great  retail  .seedsmen  of  this  country  will  soon  be  in  the 
height^  of  their  busy  season,  a  time  when  the  inrush  of  orders 
reciuiring  immediate  attention  is  so  overwhelming  as  to  make 
the  stoutest  hearts  quail  in  anticipation  of  the  usual  turmoil. 
I  nder  such  circumstances,  what  might  be  a  time  of  real  enjoy¬ 
ment  to  all  the  workers  engaged  in  the  seed  trade  becomes  a 
period  of  nerve-shattering  strenuousness,  under  the  strain  of 
vliicli  many  break  down.  Gardeners  throughout  the  country, 
and  the  public  generally,  might,  by  the  exercise  of  a  little  fore¬ 
thought,  do  iiiiich  to  make  the  lot  of  the  seedsmen  and  their 
assistants  less  arduous  by  ordering  early. 
Catalogues  are  published  in  the  autumn  in  order  to  tempt 
customeis  a.s  far  as  possible  to  order  early  the  good  things 
which  are  to  give  them  untold  pleasure  in  the  coming  season, 
and  yet,  in  the  majority  of  instances,  although  the  lists  may 
be  scanned  over  and  over  again,  no  determined  effort  is  made 
to  get  the  real  order  completed  until  the  “  gleaniy  ”  days  of 
.spring  remind  the  cultivator  that  the  time  of  real  sowing  is  at 
hand.  Then  off  goes  a  hastily  written  order  with  the  requek  that 
it  be  attended  to  at  once.  Shortly  after  it  is  discovered  that 
certiun  necessarie.s-  were  not  included  in  the  list;  away  goes 
another  order — this  process  often  being  repeated  three  or  four 
times  during  the  busy  season,  to  the  bewilderment  of  the  men 
who  are  working  night  and  day  to  keep  pace  with  the  demands 
made  upon  them. 
.\o  one  is  infallible,  and  it  is  not  always  possible  to  order 
required  three  months  ahead,  but  undoubtedly  a 
little  deliberate  forethought  and  calculation  would,  in  hosts  of 
instances,  make  matters  work  more  smoothly  all  round.  And 
let  us  all  bear  in  mind  that  the  man  who  ■'Orders  early  receives 
the  best  attention,  and  is  not  likely  to  fail  in  gettiivg  the  best 
to  be  had. 
Ihis  year  there  are  special  reasons  why  .seed  orders  should 
be  sent  in  early,  for  in  that  year  of  deluge  1903  the  seeds  of 
many  crops  failed  to  ripen  satisfactorily,  with  the  result  that 
good  stocks  of  many  popular  varieties  of  vegetable  and  flower 
seeds  are  extremely  scarce,  and  the  “late  birds”  will  un¬ 
doubtedly  in  many  cases  have  to  be  contented  with  inferior 
samples,  or  perhaps  with  the  refii.se  of  former  years.  Let  me, 
therefore,  app'eal  to  all  intere.sted  who  have  not  yet  made  out 
their  seed  order  to  do  so  at  once — sit  down  and  deliberatelj' 
scan  the  lists,  and  after  the  necessai'y  calculations  have  been 
made  in  regard  to  quantities,  enter  them  in  the  columns  so 
conveniently  provided,  despatch  the  order,  and  then  rest 
assured  that  the  first  steji  toward  success  in  the  present  year 
has  been  taken. — Warwick. 
liselio-cattleya  x  Cassiope,  Westonbirt  variety. 
This  variety  received  an  award  of  merit  when  staged  by 
Captain  G.  L.  Holford  (grower,  Mr.  H.  Alexander),  of  Westou- 
birt,  Tetbury,  at  the  meeting  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society 
on  November  24,  1903.  L.-c.  x  Cassiope  has  for  its  parents 
Lselia  puniila  and  L.-c.  x  exoniensis.  This  form  of  it  is  a  fine 
flower,  with  pale  lilac  sepals  and  petals,  a  purple,  frilled  lip, 
lyith  a  yellow-veined  throat.  Our  illustration  is  from  a  drawing 
by  Mr.  Geo.  Shayler. 
Hybridising  of  Cypripediums. 
In  repl}'  to  E.  Viner,  I  would  say  that  the  pollinating  of  the 
stigmatic  surface  in  Cypripediums  is  simple  enough.  The 
flower  is  less  easy  to  manipulate  than  that  of  a  Cattleya,  cer¬ 
tainly  ;  but  there  is  no  difficulty.  Bend  down  the  pouch  and 
notice  the  pollinia  masses,  one  on  either  side  of  the  column. 
Having  secured  one  of  the  masses  on  the  end  of  a  pointed  stick, 
turn  the  flower  round  and  backward  a  little,  so  as  to  expose  the 
triangular  shaped  .stigmata,  which  is  on  the  under  surface  of 
a  flattened,  shield-like  protuberance  that  dips  down  from  the 
main  part  of  the  column.  Now  deposit  the  pollinia  on  this  part, 
and  leave  it;  the  work  is  then  done. — D. 
Cypripedium  insigne,  in  small  pots. 
Your  able  correspondent,  “  E.  M.,”  recently  mentioned  some 
plants  of  this  useful  winter  flowering  subject  at  ITgbrook  Park, 
as  grown  in  .small  pots.  Calling  the  other  day  on  Mr.  Thos. 
Crosswell,  gardener  at  “  Homewood,”  Beckenham,  I  was  shown 
six  plants  in  9in  pots  carrying  foliage  one  yard  through,  as 
perfect  in  form  as  a  well  dressed  Chrysanthemum  bloom.  The 
flowers  were  large  and  well  developed,  averaging  about  fifty — 
the  on©  I  counted  gave  fifty-eight,  three,  being  twins.  The 
blooms  are  not  staked,  but  grow  out  from  the  foliage  in  a 
natural  manner,  giving  a  circumference  of  12ft.  These  plants 
have  not  been  potted  for  eight  or  nine  years,  consequently  they 
are  fed  on  farm  drainage.  Clay’s  fertiliser,  soot  water,  and 
guano — weak  and  often.  These  six  plants  occupy  the  whole  of 
one  side  of  a  .span-roofed  house,  furnishing  a  supply  of  choice 
cut  flowers  for  a  long  iieriod ;  some  useful  plants  in  4jin  pots 
are  carrying  nine  good  blooms.— M.  W. 
Cultural  Notes  :  Laelia  anceps— Potting— Cleaning. 
After  the  flowers  of  Lselia  anceps  are  over  lose  no  time  in 
attending  to  the  compost,  as  roots  appear  very  early  in  the  new 
year,  and  these  are  apt  to  be  damagecl  in  the  process.  Possibly 
only  a  very  small  percentage  of  the  plants  will  need  rebasketing 
or  repotting,  but  a  little  tidying  up  will  be  necessary  for  all. 
Growths  will  perhaps  have  got  loo.se,  or  are  extending  beyond  the 
scope  of  the  compost.  In  the  former  case  a  little  moss  and  peat 
Avill  be  placed  about  them  and  the  loose  growth  made  secure ; 
in  the  latter  a  larger  basket  or  block  may  be  needed,  or  more 
compo.st  placed  in  the  old  one. 
In  all  cases  remember  that  sour  or  decayed  material  is  the 
worst  of  all  possible  roothoLds,  and  unhealthy  plants  must  eventu¬ 
ally  result  if  they  are  left  in  it.  On  the  other  hand,  never 
disturb  a  plant  at  all  at  the  roots  unless  it  is  really  necessary  ; 
for  although  recently  imported  and  healthy  plants  soon  take 
with  a  will  to  new  surroundings,  weak  or  diseased  ones  are  not 
so  easily  re-established.  Take  the  opportunity,  when  the  roots 
are  exposed,  to  cut  away  all  dead  and  decaying  ones,  as  well  as 
any  old  lack-lifeless  pseudo-bulbs  not  likely  to  break  again. 
The  busiest  season  of  the  year  for  potting  is  not  far  off,  and 
any  spare  time  may  well  be  utilised  in  preparing  a  stock  of 
composts,  moss,  peat,  fibry  loam,  crocks,  charcoal,  and  leaf  soil. 
Also  see  that  there  is  a  sufficient  stock  of  labels,  stakes,  pots, 
baskets,  and  pans  cleaned  and  in  readiness.  A  iiiece  of  copper 
wire  twisted  at  the  bottom  of  a  short  label  to  make  a  stem  is 
better  than  a  long  wooden  one,  as  these  sometimes  occasion 
fungoid  attacks.  Split  bamboo  .stakes,  too,  are  preferable  to 
deal  for  the  same  reason,  and  absolute  cleanliness  of  all  material 
used  is  essential  to  success. 
The  winter  cleaning,  too,  must  be  brought  right  up  to  date, 
as  there  will  be  plenty  to  do  later  on,  and  during  the  next  few 
months  insects  increase  and  multiply  in  a  remarkable  manner, 
running  over  the  tender  new  foliage  when  it  appears  and  making 
it  unsightly  the  whole  season.  Tlie  value  of  clean  soft  water  as 
an  insecticide  is  not  .sufficiently  known — or,  at  least,  the  know¬ 
ledge  is  not  acted  upon.  A  good  dipping  in  tepid  water  first, 
then  a  sponging  with  soft  water  to  which  a  piece  of  softsoap  (the 
size  of  a  jiigeon’s  egg  to  a  bucketful)  has  been  added,  and  a  final 
thorough  syringing  again  with  soft  water,  i-^  a  very  effectual 
method  of  killing  insects  of  nearly  all  kinds. — H.  R.  R. 
