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GARDEN NOTES. -

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GARDEN NOTES. THE fibrous-rooted begonias are important stove, or, intermediate house plants, and those that have been struck from cuttings this year will, if they have received proper attention (says W. B."), be making fine examples. My plants are kept in a well-venti- lated house, and the greatest care is taken not to give too much water either at the roots or in the atmo- sphere, as the only outcome of too warm a temperature is a leggy, sappy growth, the very thing that one must avoid. A very beautiful section is that which comprises such varieties, or rather hybrids, as John Heal, which is an exceptionally free-blooming kind, the flowers crimson, and make a bright effective display. Mine are grown in the intermediate house, and not exposed to too much sun. Euphorbia jacquinise- flora, one of the most useful plants that can be grown in the stove for supplying winter flowers, has a warm moist corner in the stove. I have trained the shoots near the glass, and no shade is given. In this way a greater quantity of bloom is gained. The propaga- tion of late poinsettias is over, and attention is given to potting them from the pots in which the cuttings have been struck singly into one size larger. It is only necessary to keep the house moderately close until they have thoroughly recovered from the shift, but afterwards give freer ventilation. I have made re- peated allusion to the blue flowered eranthemum pulchellum, which always makes when in bloom a pretty feature of the stove. The plain fact is that cultivators try it but fail, simply through the reason that it is a plant that requires plenty of warmth and abundant moisture. Therefore at this period, in particular, encourage as much as possible a free growth, and if the specimens are unduly tall stop them. The cuttings will make useful plants if they are placed singly, similar to poinsettias, in a three- inch pot. They may be permitted to flower in this size. A plant that has been very beautiful with me is Lagerstrcemia indica, which is planted out in an annexe to the stove, the soil used being a mixture of good fibry loam and peat, with plenty of sharp silver sand added. The flowers are of no value for cutting, but produced in the greatest profusion and of a charming cnmpled form, the colour what is known as shrimp pink. Give a slight rest during winter, just giving sufficient water to prevent the shoots from shrivelling, but with the spring months more water and heat are essential. It is a native of China and Japan. There is also a white variety, but I do not know it. The flowers are white instead of pink. ANY orchids, other than those of a purely botanical nature, that flower at this season of the year (observes W. H. Young) are of value, and amongst those in bloom just now are a few species of Miltonia that deserve a note. The best is M. spectabilis and its varieties, of which there are several, the most notable being M. s. Moreliana, which differs from the type in having flowers of a rich purple colour, whereas M. spectabilis has pure white sepals and petals, and the lip white shaded with rosy-violet. A good way to grow this species is on pieces of troe-fern in a pan to form a pyramid, and on this fix the plants with wire pegs, filling in the crevices with a little live sphagnum. I find that they do remarkably well treated thus. They should always be well supplied with water, only during the winter a little less must be given than when the plants are growing. The leaves of this species usually havea yellow appearanee, not-as some imagine —from exposure to the light, but it is, I believe, their natural tint. Another useful species is M. Regenelli, having rosy-white sepals and petals, the lip of a lilac and rose colour. Pot culture suits this best, and to induce it to flower well the plants should be kept a little on the dry side during thejwinter months. M. Clowesi is an old but valuable species, having been in cultivation since 1840. It should be grown in pots. A piece of fern-stem placed upright in the pot, just high enough for the base of the plant to rest upon, is a great aid to the plant to affix itself to, filling round the fern-stem with a little peat and moss. Miltonia bellula is rather rare, but is somewhat like M. Regnelli. It grows freely in a basket, but it should not be hung very near the glass unless it is in a very shady position. All the above species may be grown on the shady side of the cattleya house, or in an intermediate house. THERE are still several kinds of cattleyas in flower, viz., C. Dowiana, and the variety aurea, and C. chrysotoxa, which, in my opinion, is a variety of Dowiana, also the recently-introduced C.warocqueana, or, more correctly speaking, the autumn-flowering C. labiata. Recently I saw plants in Mr. Warocque's collection that had made bulbs over a foot long, and with sheaths fully six inches in length. His plants are nearly all grown in baskets, hung up near the glass. One of our best plants rotted off immediately after flowering last year, which was due, no doubt, to having a little too much material about the roots, it being grown in a pot, and when watered the soil remained wet too long. If grown in baskets it is possible to fix the plants firmly with less material than if grown in pots. There are very few bulbophvllums worth growing excepting as botanical curiosities; but B. umbellatum, which we have in flower just now, and carrying 10 spikes, makes quite a pretty plant. It succeeds well in a pot placed in the in- termediate house, and kept moderately dry during the winter. Amongst a host of new orchids that have been introduced during the last twelve years, few equal and none surpass Vanda Sanderiana, which was im- ported from the Philippine Islands in 1881.'A grand display of this magnificent species was made by Mr. Sander at the Drill Hall, Westminster, on September 6, on which occasion two plants were exhibited, each carrying six spikes of their finely-coloured flowers. Basket culture suits this species best, and they should be placed near the glass in a light position, as they make sturdier growths and flower better than if they are heavily shaded. At all times large quantities of water should be given them, excepting for a short time in the winter, when a short rest should be afforded by withholding water. Calanthes and pleiones are'beginning to lose their leaves, but they must still be supplied with plenty of water. Later on much less will suffice, but now that the bulbs are swelling up and the flower spikes forming, a little liquid manure will greatly aid the latter if given now. THE second early apples are now (says R. R.") fit for gathering. These include such cooking sorts as Ecklinville Seedling, Lord Grosvenor (or Jolly Beggar), Old Hawthornden, Lord Suffield, Keswick Codlin, and others. The dessert varieties include Worcester Penrmain and Red Astrachan. I do not like to gather any of the above-mentioned kinds before the middle of the month, because I believe the fruit continues to increase in weight up to the time it comes readily away from the branches. I find, moreover, that the longer the fruit is left on the tree the better colour it gains. There are so few pears generally this season, that the only sorts likely to require attention just now are Beurre d'Amanalis, Beurre Giffard, and Brockworth Park. These may be taken to the fruit room at once. It is well to bear in mind that ripe apples or pears become contami- nated if in contact with anything objectionable, such as old and worm eaten woodwork. To prevent the flavour of the fruit in such cases suffering, I advise that the shelves be covered with paper. Those who have to send ripe pears a distance should do so before the fruit is too soft, or they must be as carefully packed as peaches. With regard to the condition of the trees growing in the form of cordons or pyramids, they are in some cases so vigorous (owing to there being no fruit to check their luxuriance) that I can plainly see that we shall have to resort to root pruning to prevent an excess of vigour next year, which, if allowed to go unchecked, would probably prove injurious to future crops. If the weather continues fairly dry, all the trees that require this attention will be operated upon before I write under this head- ing a fortnight hence. Much as I am in favour of root pruning over-luxuriant trees, I have learned from experience that some judgment is necessary in selecting those to be operated npon. I have no objection to lifting bodily and replanting a young tree that has been only four years planted, but after they have been established longer than that I am satisfied that it is safer to cat asunder the large roots on one side of the tree only, and to deal with the remaining half one year or two years later. With regard to unproductive pyramid trees ten feet high, with nearly that much in diameter of branches, it is better not to root prune, but to allow the tree to exhaust its strength by leaving the branches to grow unchecked until the end of September in each year. Wall trees of the same age being more manage- able, as thera are no branches extending outwards, can be lifted with comparative ease without seriously injuring the roots, and when so dealt with it frequently turns a barren tree into a fruitful one after a year or two. Many a stubborn tree has been brought into a productive condition by cutting asunder the large roots that had gone down into a bad cold soil, and lifting the smaller ones nearer the surface. When I have such trees to deal with, I do not wait for all the leaves to fall, but accomplish the work early in October. The work in the orchard house just now is not of a serious character, but it is necessary to keep the trees from which the fruit has been taken syringed of an evening. I find that there is a slight indication of red spider at one end, and this must not be allowed to increase.- Gardener,q Magazine.

AMERICAN FUN. .

THE FARMER'S COLUMN. ) -

THE. HOUSEHOLD.I

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THE WOMAN'S WORLD. -

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LITERATURE AND ART. -