494 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
Jane  9,  1904. 
A  Specimen  Calceolaria. 
On  page  491  we  figure  a  well-grown,  floriferous,  large- 
flowered  herbaceous  Calceolaria  from  a  photograph  taken  at 
Wordsley,  Stourbridge,  where  Messrs.  E.  Webb  and  Sons’  seed 
business  is.  The  plants  from  seed,  we  believe,  are  cultivated 
at  Ivinver,  and  the  methods  are  evidently  highly  successful. 
Hybrid  Gerberas. 
Mr.  Irwin  Lynch,  Curator  of  the  Botanic  Garden,  Cam¬ 
bridge,  contributed  a  very  admirable  small  collection  of  hybrid 
Gerberas,  the  result  of  crossing  G.  Jame.soni  and  G.  viridifolia. 
Some  of  the  hybrids  have  also  been  crossed  with  the  original 
species.  The  G.  x  Sir  Michael  is  bright  rose-pink ;  G.  x 
Emmanuel  is  lighter  in  shade ;  and  G.  x  Brilliant  has  more  of  an 
orange  hue  than  is  found  in  G.  Jamesoni.  G.  x  Village  Black- 
smitli  and  G.  x  Trinity,  light  carmine-pink,  are  each  very 
attractive. — (Omitted  from  Temple  ShoAV  report.) 
Ostnich  Fern. 
Eor  filling  a  shady  place  quickly,  the  ostrich  fern, 
Struthiopteris,  is  very  good.  Is  it  generally  known  that  there 
is  a  form  of  it  which  never  produces  fertile  fronds  I  think 
there  is  such  a  one;  and  this  is  the  one  that  spreads  so  freely, 
quickly  forming  a  large  clump.  The  one  which  bears  fertile 
fronds  spreads  but  little.  This  has  been  my  observation,  and 
others  have  noticed  large  masses  of  it  which  in  many  years  have 
never  borne  fronds  of  a  fertile  character. — G. 
Pruning  Rhododendrons. 
At  this  season  of  the  j’ear,  says  Mr.  Meehan,  in  the  north. 
Rhododendrons  are  commencing  to  flower.  The  nurseryman 
carrying  a  stock  of  them  can  tell  by  this  time  what  are  likely 
tp  be  sold  of  what  he  still  has  on  hand,  and  it  is  the  practice 
(and  a  good  one,  too)  to  cut  or  break  off  the  flower  buds  from  all 
that  are  not  likely  to  be  sold.  The  plants  are  the  better  for  it, 
the  support  the  buds  would  have  demanded  going  to  increase 
the  strength  of  the  growing  shoots.  Where  the  flower  bud 
is,  two  or  three  growth  buds  will  start,  and  these  will  be 
stronger  if  the  flower  bud  is  not  allowed  to  expand.  These 
shoots  will  not  bloom  the  coming  .season,  but  the  strong  shoots 
with  no  buds  on  this  season  are  the  ones  that  will.  Customers 
who  demand  bushes  with  all  the  flower  buds  possible  on  them, 
make  a  mistake,  and  nearly  all  do  it.  There  is  a  great  display 
the  same  season,  but  none  the  next.  Rhododendrons  which  are 
not  shapely  may  be  safely  pruned  into  shape.  They  break  freely 
from  the  old  wood  when  pruned  down  to  it. 
Spipsea  confusa  in  Pots. 
At  Eastertime  a  most  appropriate  plant  for  decorative  pur¬ 
poses  is  this  pretty  Spirma.  Long  sprays  wreathed  with  their 
clusters  of  tiny  white  blossoms,  and  the  glaucous  tinted  leafage 
combine  to  make  these  a  distinct  and  pleasing  change  among 
forced  plants  in  the  greenhouse.  As  a  room  plant,  too,  they 
lend  themselves  most  willingly.  Well  growui  plants  may  be  had 
in  Tin  and  larger  sized  pots,  and  their  shrubby  nature  A^en 
careful  cultivation  has  been  given  make  them  a  complete  and 
w'eli-furnished  object  for  vases  in  hall  or  drawing  room.  This 
Spiraea  is  a  small  growung,  deciduous  bush,  equally  adapted  to 
the  shrubbery  border  or  as  a  siiecimen  on  gras.s.  It  forms 
naturally  long  arching  sprays,  clothed  with  a  profusion  of 
innocent  blossom,  quite  distinct  from  any  other  flowmring  sub¬ 
ject.  If  kept  w'ell  attended  wuth  water  during  summer,  and 
the  pots  preferably  plunged  to  aid  uniformity  of  root  moisture, 
they  will  flow'er  as  well  the  second  year  as  when  first  bought 
in  from  the  nursery,  which  is  a  point  largely  in  their  favour. 
In  the  event  of  large  specimens  being  required,  the  simple  rule 
of  supplying  larger  pots  and  fresh  soil  quickly  furnish  them  in 
accordance  wdth  the  liberality  of  their  treatment.  They  have 
not  the  perfume  of  the  Lilac  to  recommend  them,  but,  on  the 
other  hand,  they  have  no  offending  scent  to  mar  their  innocent 
beauty,  hut  grouped  among  other  forced  plants  they  afford  a 
feature  bcth  interesting  and  useful. — W.  S. 
Pelargronium  Lady  Decies. 
This  is  a  decorative  variety,  with  large  clusters  of  well- 
formed,  rounded  flowers.  These  are  of  a  warm  blush  hue, 
lightened  towards  the  base  with  silvery  white,  and  having 
streaked  blotches  of  purple  on  the  upper,  inner  surface  of  the 
blossoms.  The  plants  are  dwarf  and  vigorous,  and  bushy,  very 
free-flowering.  A.M.,  R.H.S.,  June  1st,  when  staged  by  Mr. 
Charles  Turner. 
Veitch’s  Group  of  Foliage  Plants. 
The  group  of  exotic  foliage  plants  figured  on  the  opposite 
page  was  .staged  by  Messrs.  James  Veitch  and  Sons,  Ltd.,  of  the 
Royal  Exotic  Nunsery,  Chelsea,  at  the  Temple  Show^  It  was 
one  of  the  finest  and  best-finished  efforts  they  have  ever  made, 
and  the  quality  of  the  plants  was  exceedingly  high.  Mr. 
Tivey,  the  grower  and  executor  of  the  arrangement,  deserves 
congratulations.  It  contained  the  followdng  plants : — A  fine 
specimen  of  Draciena  Godsefiflana,  Phyllotcenium  Lindeni,  a 
superb  plant  of  Nepenthes  Mastersiana  wdth  about  two  dozen 
pitchers,  many  of  them  of  great  size,  and  beautifully  coloured  ; 
Nepenthes  Burkei  and  N.  B.  excellens,  the  latter  with  broader 
pitchers,  beautifully  marked;  N.  sanguinea,  with  large 
pitchers  of  a  deep  colour;  Begonias  Albert  Maumene  and 
Reine  .larry  des  Loges,  two  new  varieties  of  the  Rex  type;  also 
liledinilla  magnifica,  Crotons  Sunbeam,  Warreni,  Sunshine, 
Thomsoni,  and  Nestor.  .  A  good  specimen  of  Caryota  occupied 
the  centre. 
Fpuit  Paper  Multaeppy. 
Eor  many  years  the  Paper  Mulberry  (Broussonetia  papyri- 
fera)  was  a  favourite  street  tree  in  Philadelphia  and  other  cities, 
but  of  late  years  the  Poplar  and  the  Plane  have  superseded  it. 
This  is  a  tree  which  takes  kindly  to  city  life,  and  there  is  still 
room  for  its  use  by  those  who  desire  a  good  shade  tree.  Until 
a  year  or  two  back  the  female  form  of  this  tree  seemed  unknown 
here.  I  had  never  seen  it,  nor  heard  of  anyone  who  had.  It 
is  a  very  ornamental  tree,  the  flowers  coming  in  what  may  be 
termed  red,  fleshy  balls,  which  certainly  are  interesting  and 
uncommon-looking.  It  is  well  worthy  of  a  place  as  an  orna¬ 
mental  tree.  Objection  against  the  Paper  Mulberry  (says  the 
“  Florist’s  Exchange  ”)  is  its  habit  of  suckering  where  its  roots 
get  injured.  So  long  as  uninjured  there  ai-e  no  suckers,  but 
let  the  roots  be  broken,  and  suckers  appear  at  once.  In  cities, 
where  streets  are  paved  as  well  as  sidewalks,  there  would  be  no 
chance  for  suckers,  and  the  tree  could  be  used  in  such  positions 
very  well.  The  absence  of  the  female  Paper  Mulberry  for  so 
many  years  is  an  illustration  of  how  trees  spread  from  a  single 
source.  This  tree  existed  by  thousands  in  these  parts  for  years, 
and  all  of  the  male  variety ;  and,  without  a  doubt,  owed  their 
origin  to  stock  obtained  by  some  importer  in  early  days,  who 
had  inopagated  and  distributed  it ;  otherwise  it  could  hardly 
be  that  no  female  trees  of  it  had  ever  been  seen  here  befoi’e  a  lot 
of  trees  were  imported  from  Europe. 
Philadelphus  fop  Fopcing-. 
The  flowers  of  the  Mock  Orange  are  familiar  with  almost 
everyone  in  the  early  summer,  when  their  flowers  pervade  the 
atmosphere  with  their  refre.shing  scent,  but  as  pot  plants  they 
are  not  so  common  as  Lilacs,  Deutzias,  Spiraeas,  or  Guelder 
Roses.  The  smaller  growing  forms,  however,  are  distinctly 
interesting,  either  in  the  greenhouse,  conservatory,  or  living 
room,  providing  their  fragrance  is  not  too  overbearing.  Some 
sorts  are  almost  devoid  of  scent,  others  only  charge  the  air  to  a 
perceptibly  small  degree,  and  in  any  case  a  moderate  use  of 
forced  pot  plants  can  be  made  interesting  in  affording  a  change 
of  stock.  Interspersed  with  Azaleas,  mollis  and  indica,  they 
are  welcomed  in  their  quieter  tones  of  colour.  As  cut  flowers 
the  Mock  Orange,  culled  from  the  open  air  bush  in  summer, 
often  bring  disapijointment  in  the  shortness  of  their  term  of 
freshness,  but  in  summer  other  flowers  as  well  as  these  are 
given  to  undesirable  freaks.  Grown  under  glass,  and  the  plants 
duly  hardened  by  exposure  to  the  coolness  of  the  greenhouse 
before  they  are  cut,  this  failing  is  not  so  pronounced.  They 
are  easily  forced,  and  as  easily  procured  from  nurserymen  as  tne 
other  familiar  flowers  of  springtime,  and  it  is  not  a  little  sur¬ 
prising  that  they  are  so  rare  in  pots,  and  yet  so  common  in  the 
shrubbery.  With  ordinary  attention  after  blooming  they  may 
be  made  available  for  a  second  season’s  display  without  re¬ 
potting,  gently  forced,  which  cannot  be  said  of  some  other 
forced  shrubs,  and  Lilacs  in  particular.  These  often  disappoint 
in  their  meagreness  of  blossom  after  their  first  year. — W.  S. 
