JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
April  23,  1904. 
3  j6 
with  the  reasonable  excuse  tliat  they  must  have  them  or  go 
without.  AVhat  is  one  man’s  ill  luck  is  another  man’s  good 
fortune,  and  I  guess  there  are  many  men  on  the  other  side  of 
the  Atlantic  who  are  all  the  richer  on  account  of  the  disastrous 
frost  of  last  April,  which  so  utterly  dashed  the  hopes  of  British 
growers. 
"Will  this  year’s  blossom  be  fertile?  moans  the  ijessimist  who 
clings  tenaciously  to  the  ripened  wood  theory.  I  have  examisied 
some  early  blossoms,  which  seem  all  right,  and  there  is  no 
reason  to  fear  that  the  bloom  yet  to  come  will  be  unable  to 
perform  its  proper  functions. 
Through  the  windows  we  look  out  on  an  orchard  containing 
a  variety  of  fruit.s,  including  Apples^  Pears,  Plums,  and  Dam¬ 
sons.  Looking  out  on  this  orchard  almost  every  day  for  months, 
we  have  watched  the  gradual  change  that  has  taken  and  is  still 
taking  place,  and  hailed  with  a  degree  of  pleasure  the  bitter 
east  wind  of  iNfarch,  which  whi.stled  through  the  branches  and 
hurled  powdery  snowflakes  here  and  there,  for  the  cold  was 
keeping  the  buds  in  their  places ;  but  v  ith  the  warmer  weather 
experienced  since  April  came  in  a  change  has  come  about. 
Some  of  the  earliest  Plums  are  already  in  bloom,  the  Pears 
will  be  sheets  of  whiteness  in  a  few  days,  and-an  examination  of 
the  swelling  Apple  buds  reveals  the  fact  that,  whatever  the  crop 
is,  there  will  be  no  shortage  of  blossom.  By  the  time  these  lines 
are  in  the  hands  of  the  reader  the  orchard,  along  with  hundreds 
of  others,  will  be  all  a-blooming,  and  in  the  hearts  of  growers 
of  every  description  there  will  be  a  deep-felt  anxiety  for 
favourable  climatic  conditions  till  after  the  flowers  are  set. 
Is  there  any  season  of  the  year  more  delightful  than  when 
fruit  trees  in  gardens  and  orchards  on  every  side  are  gay  with 
blossom  ?  Surely  not  ;  and  the  country  is  a  place  worth  living 
in  at  this  time.  X'nfortunately  for  the  perfect  enjoyment  of 
the  floral  picture,  there  is  always  the  harrowing  fear  that  a 
frost  may  come  any  night  and  ruin  the  whole  prospect,  as  it 
did  last  year  ;  and  therefore,  though  one  would  gladly  see  the 
time  of  blossom  last  longer,  there  is  a  general  feeling  of  relief 
when  the  pink  and  white  petals  flicker  to  the  ground,  and  the 
crop  has  passed  safely  through  its  first  and  most  trying  ordeal. 
To  us,  no  floral  picture  is  more  beautiful  than  that  presented 
by  a  Cheiry  orchard  when  in  full  bloom.  It  is  not  everyone  who 
has  the  privilege  of  this  feast,  for  the  monopoly  of  Cherry 
culture  in  Britain  is  practically  held  by  the  County  of  Kent, 
where  the  fruit  grows  to  perfection. 
Take  at  random  the  stretch  of  country  from  Faversham, 
through  Sittingbouine,  and  on  nearly  up  to  Chatham;  it  is  a 
country  of  Cherry  orchards,  and  the  eye  of  the  traveller  rests, 
mile  after  mile,  on  a  sea  of  pink  and  v  bite  blossoms,  with  the 
delicate  tint  of  the  bursting  foliage  interspersing  the  flowers. 
Those  pearly  blossoms  represent  thousands  of  pounds  if  all  goes 
well,  but  an  adverse  pinch  of  weather  is  enough  to  write  ruin  on 
that  fair  scene,  jirst  as  the  word  was  written  with  telling  effect 
only  last  season. 
Deprive  the  fruit-grower  of  hope,  and  his  life  would  hardly 
be  worth  living ;  and  because  Cherries  failed  last  year,  that  is 
no  reason  why  they  should  do  so  again  this ;  and  it  is  well 
known  that  whatever  happens  later,  there  can  be  no  possible 
chance  of  fruit  without  flowers.  Neither  are  fruit  growers 
readily  daunted,  for  in  Kent,  in  spite  of  the  bitter  experience  of 
last  year,  a  good  deal  of  iflanting  has  been  done,  and  year 
after  year  fruit  culture  becomes  a  more  important  industry  in 
the  southern  county. 
There  can  be  no  single  householder  in  the  country  to  whom 
the  season  of  fruit  blossom  has  not  a  special  interest,  and  even 
“the  man  in  the  street,”  who  scarcely  knows  one  fruit  tree 
from  another,  is  glad  to  hear  when  prospects  are  good,  as  he 
lias  reason  to  be,  for  it  makes  mucb  difference  to  him.  After 
all,  the  home  grower  is  the  strongest  power  in  the  supply  of  the 
iresh  fruit  commodity,  for  though  the  foreigner  does  much  he 
cannot  do  everything,  and  when  the  crops  of  cjuickly  perishable 
fruit  fail,  or  partly  so,  the  individual  consumer  feels  he  has  not 
been  aide  to  get  a  sufficiency  of  this  wholesome  food,  or  perhaps 
none  at  all.  It  is  said  that  Britons  do  not  eat  enough  fruit. 
Perhaps  not ;  hut  still,  they  consume  a  good  deal,  and  they  miss 
it  when  it  is  not  forthcoming.  And  here  one  may  say  that  they 
would  probably  dispose  of  more  in  seasons  of  plenty  if  some 
bettei'  means  could  be  devised  of  conveying  it  from  the  producer 
to  the  consumer,  at  prices  that  would  pay  the  former,  and  yet 
not  be  above  the  pockets  of  the  working  millions  of  the  latter. 
Perhaps  things  will  woik  themselves  right  in  this  respect 
if  given  tiine,  and  foi'  the  moment  our  concern  is  blossom.  Now 
we  are  enjoying  the  fulness  of  its  beauty  :  a  few  months  hence 
we  shall  be  enjoying  the  luscious  fruits.  AVe  may  well  contend 
that  the  season  of  blossom  is  one  of  momentous  interest  and 
concern  to  the  highest  and  the  lowest,  the  richest  and  the 
poorest. -^G.  H.  H. 
Cattleya  Schpodenae. 
The  variety  of  this  handsome  Cattleya,  that  was  exhibited  by 
Mr.  J.  Gurney  Fowler  at  the  meeting  of  the  Royal  Horticul¬ 
tural  Society  on  April  19,  and  named  “Fowler’s  variety,” 
served  to  draw  attention  to  the  species  and  the  forms  from  it. 
Mr.  Fowler’s  novelty  is  the  best  to  date  in  point  of  size,  and 
probably  also  in  the  beauty  of  its  colouring;  but  C.  Shroderm 
(thought  by  some  to  be  only  a  variety  of  C.  Triana*),  is  an 
admirable  plant  for  any  collection.  The  typical  flowers  arc 
usually  wholly  rosy-lilac,  excepting  the  orange-yellow  through 
the  centre  of  the  lip,  and  it  is  pleasantly  Hawthorn-scented. 
Pure  white  varieties  sometimes  occur,  but  the  species  seems  to 
vary  a  good  deal,  and  various  shades  of  colour  may  l>e  fmind. 
The  plant  is  of  good  constitution,  and  does  well  with  the  usual 
Cattleya-house  treatment. 
Cultupal  Notes:  Dendrofaiums,  Diacpium  taicornutum, 
Dendrobiums  are  rapidly  becoming  more  plentiful  in  flower, 
the  earliest  sorts,  such  as  D.  nobile,  D.  AVardianum,  and  otheis 
being  in  full  beauty.  It  is  too  soon  yet  to  increase  the  root 
moisture  much,  but  rather  more  in  the  atmosphere  will  be  an 
advantage  until  the  flowers  show  colour,  when  less  will,  of 
course,  be  needed  to  conserve  the  latter.  The  same  holcls  good 
with  the  later  flowering  evergreen  species,  as  D.  densiflorum 
and  its  allies,  I),  chrysotoxum  and  D.  Farmeri.  Shrivelling 
must  be  carefully  avoided  with  new  growths,  but  if  sufficient 
moisture  is  pre.sent  to  prevent  this  all  will  be  well. 
D.  chrysanthum  and  1).  calceolare  are  growing  freely,  and 
new  roots  are  forming  ;  this  necessitates  a  high  temperature, 
with  abundant  moisture  in  the  air  to  prevent  insects  getting  a 
footing  upon  the  tender  foliage.  The  value  of  tepid  soft  water 
as  an  insecticide  for  such  plants  as  grow  rapidly  is  not  suffi¬ 
ciently  known.  It  is,  of  cours-e,  perfectly  safe  to  use  daily  or 
twice  daily  in  hot  weather,  and  no  insect  can  live  where  it  is 
used.  In  addition,  it  is  an  excellent  growth  stimulant.  A 
thorough  washing  from  the  syringe  does  more  to  recuperate  the 
plants  after  a  hot  drying  day  in  spring  than  any  other  method 
that  can  be  practised.  . 
A  beautiful  plant  now  in  flower,  that  delights. in  this  hot, 
moist  atmosphere,  is  Epidendrum  (Diacrium)  bicornutum. 
Found  growing  naturally  on  exposed,  wave-washed  rocks  in 
Trinidad,  no  amount  of'  sun  heat  and  atmospheric  moisture 
seems  too  much  tor  it,  provided  the  roots  are  vigorous.  It  has 
never  been  a  full  success  under  cultivation,  but  much  of  the 
injury  is,  I  am  convinced,  caused  by  the  frequent  pulling  about 
at  the  roots  some  cultivators  appear  to  think  neces.sary.  I  have 
had  it  for  .seven  or  eight  years  running  in  the  same  pots,  with 
only  a  little  sphagnum  moss  and  crocks  for  the  roots  to  run 
in,  and  each  season  its  large,  hollow,  horn-like  pseudo-bulbs 
increased  in  size ;  but  dii’ectly  they  were  disturhed  at  the  roots 
a  backset  occurred  very  difficult  to  arrest. 
I  strongly  advise  anyone  who  is  starting  its  culture— it  is  the 
most  beautiful  of  all  Epidendriims — to  do  so  with  newly-imported 
plants,  to  pot  them  as  soon  as  received  in  fairly  large  recep¬ 
tacles,  and  to  use  very  little,  if  any,  peat  in  the  compost.  The 
sun  may  .shine  fully  upon  them,  provided  the  atmosphere  is 
always  moist,  and  as  much  air  as  possible,  consistent  with  a  very 
high  temperature,  should  be  allowed  during  its  sea.son  of 
growth.  —  H.  R.  R. 
Floral  Decorations, 
Tasteful  floral  designs  are  frequently  to  be  .seen  in  florists’ 
shops  of  the  AAest  End,  Ijondon.  Double  white  Stocks  are  the 
only  utilisable  flowers  at  the  moment  for  “  lining  ”  the  frame¬ 
work  of  wreaths  and  cros.ses.  By  lining,  we  mean  the  formation 
of  an  even,  level  surface  composed  of  flowers  close  set.  A  large 
wreath  lately  seen  A^  as  furnished  with  double  aa  bite  Stocks,  AA'ith 
a  bouquet  of  A’^alley  Lilies,  Lilium  Harrisi,  and  Avhite  Caladium 
leaves — C.  candidum.  A  cross  (the  cross  piece  set  diagonally) 
Avas  also  covered  closely  Avith  Avhite  Stocks,  and  here  and  there 
bunches  of  A'alley  Inlies,  Avith  blooms  of  Dendrohium  AA^ardi- 
anum.  A  large  bunch  of  Lilies  occupied  a  position  near  the 
base  of  the  upright. 
A  square  basket  filled  Avith  Chorizema,  Anthuriums  with 
crimson  spathes,  and  Asparagus  flexuosus,  Avas  pretty  and  effec- 
tir'e.  A  basket  containing  crimson  Ericas  and  the  richest 
crimson  decoratiAm  Pelargoniums  avc  have  hitherto  seen,  was 
worthy  of  note.  Ribbon  to  match  Avas  looped  and  “bowed” 
