64 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



Trenching. — A. B.—The -way of doing this must depend somewhat on the 

 nature of the subsoil : if this is good, the two spits may change places ; but if not, 

 the under spit should be loosened and broken, and only in part mixed with the 

 top. From what you say of your garden, we should suppose thorough trenching to be 

 best for you, piatting the top spit in the trench first, then the manure, and the 

 xmder spit on that to form the new surface. At the next trenching the top spit will 

 come up again, and in the com'se of time the whole depth of the two spits will 

 become blended. 



Bekberis macrophtlla — IS THERE srcH A PLANT ? — Can you, or any of your 

 readers, inform rae whether there is really a distinct species of iJerberis called 

 B. macrophylla ? In Johnson's " Cottage Gardener's Dictionary," I find in his list 

 of Berberries " B. macrophylla, Japan, 1847," and I have also met with the name 

 in some of the nurserymen's catalogues. On further inquiry, however, I have 

 always been disappointed, the so-called £■ macrophylla proving to be some other 

 species. In Dr. Lindley's list of Berberries, published in 1850 in the " Journal of 

 the Horticultm-al Society," the name occm-s as a synonyme of B. Wallichiana. lu 

 the Floral World for November, 1867, I wrote, " I had to send a great distance 

 for B. macrophylla." When the plant, however, arrived, it turned out to be 

 B. mierophyUa! and truly the change of one small letter makes a vast difference 

 in these matters. I am now half-inclined to think that the existence of the plant I 

 am in search of will prove to be a myth. — J. «/., Littlehourne. 



Viola jornuta, Clematis Jackmannh. — Fels asks the following questions : — 

 1. 'Should Viola cornuta be cut down to the ground after blossoming, or should they 

 be left with last year's growth upon fhem ? [No real necessity for cutting at all, 

 except for neatness ; but the best display of flowers is to be obtained by completely- 

 renewing the plants every year.] 2. flow far apart should the yellow and blue 

 Cliveden pansies be planted to form a compact edging to a border, and should the 

 blossoms be taken oflf at the present season ? [Plant them nine to twelve inches apart, 

 and let them flower as they please ; peg them down as they extend.] 3. Also, will 

 they continue to blossom all the summer months ? [Yes ; but ,they bloom most 

 freely in spring.] 4. Is it better to cut in newly-planted Clematis Jackmannii 

 which are intended to form a border (pegged down), or, being the first year's 

 growth, should they be left as they come from the nurseries ? Mr. Jackman states 

 " they may be cut down to four eyes," but does not state that they should be so 

 treated. [Best to cut them back to four eyes, as there is ample time for them to 

 make a free growth before their flowering season commences.] 



Fraxinella. — I should be very much obliged if you would kindly tell me, 

 through the Floral World, whether Bictamnus alba requires any particular care 

 in cultivation. About two years ago, I got Wo plants from a garden in the south 

 of England where it has flourished for years, and they have barely existed with 

 me, growing only a few inches high, and looking utterly miserable. They are 

 both in sheltered situations — one in a stifSsh soil, the other in a sandy one. The 

 latter is slightly less wretched than the other. The climate here (Kildare) is 

 certainly colder than that from which they came, but it is not severe ; peaches 

 ripen well most summers in the open air. — C. E. C. T. [The Fraxinellas are no 

 more particular as to soil and climate than the groundsel, therefore it ought to 

 grow as well in your garden at Kildare as in the south of England. But there is 

 some little mystery about this plant nevertheless, for many people try every means 

 imaginable, and never succeed in securing it as a permanent plant in the garden ; 

 while in other cases the same plants have been known to outlive three or four 

 generations of men. The only peculiarity v/e have ourselves observed in its culti- 

 vation are these three — 1st, it cannot be easily multiplied by slips or cuttings ; 

 2nd, that it may be multiplied readily by means of seeds, which must be soion as soon 

 as they are rijje ; 3rd, that all kinds of garden vermin are fond of it, and if snails, 

 slugs, and wood-lice abound in a garden, it is next to impossible to keep the 

 Fraxinella, so perseveringly do they nibble it away as fast as it grows. There are 

 three species in cultivation — D. alba, yvith white flowers; B. fraxinella, -pnri^le ; 

 and B. taurica, pink. 



