THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 355 



a ruin or rockery, and when once established make a free rapid 

 growth, and afford entertainment of a far higher order than can 

 even be imagined by those who are unfamiliar with their characters. 



To speak of ivies as suitable to clothe the ground under trees, 

 and to add to the beauty of mounds, and to fill up nooks where 

 scarcely any other kinds of plants will grow, is to repeat a thrice- 

 told tale. But hitherto only one or two sorts have been used for 

 these purposes, whereas there are about thirty that are suitable, and 

 amongst these will be found many curious and interesting forms, 

 and a few that are richly variegated. 



When we speak of ivy edgings, we tap a nearly new subject. In 

 grassy country gardens these are not so much needed, but in town 

 gardens and in the entrance courts in the country, and especially in 

 public gardens and promenades, ivy edgings are invaluable. The 

 common Irish ivy forms a sumptuous marginal line where a good 

 breadth can be afforded it, and grows more freely in almost any kind 

 of soil than any other ivy known. For a finishing feature to a great 

 raised bed of evergreen shrubs, or a block of roses, it is truly grand, 

 but, strange to say, we meet with but few examples. But let us 

 step a stage higher. What have we now to entertain us in the 

 parterre ? Perhaps nothing. Now, a good deal of thought and 

 labour are bestowed upon the production of marginal lines of silvery- 

 leaved and golden-leaved plants, and in almost every case preference 

 is given to tender subjects that cease to be useful with the first 

 accession of frost. Here, then, the variegated ivies will prove fast 

 and faithful friends if we will have them. All the small-leaved silvery- 

 tinted kinds make the neatest and brightest edgings imaginable, and 

 are as good all winter as they are all summer ; like the " daisy that 

 never dies," these hardy, bright-leaved, pliable plants keep their 

 beauty for ever, and are always improving with advancing age. It 

 may be rather slow work at first, but there will be much joy at last 

 for those who will do them justice. 



Tet once more as to the uses of the ivies. You have heard 

 enough, perhaps, of the " plunging system," and the details of its 

 working as carried out in the experimental garden. You shall not 

 be troubled again upon that subject now, but it must be mentioned, 

 because we owe to our development of that system a knowledge of 

 the immense value of the ivies as pot plants, both for the furnishing 

 of the garden and the conservatory during winter. Amongst all the 

 evergreen shrubs that are adapted for winter furnishing, the ivies 

 must take the lead, and whoever will have patience with them will 

 be well rewarded. Without patience, however, there can be no 

 satisfactory result, for a few years at least must pass ere the culti- 

 vator can become possessed of handsome specimens. We know of 

 but two modes of training the plants when grown in pots. We 

 have tried all the modes of training that could be thought of, and 

 found at last that the form of a cone is the best for climbing ivies, 

 and the form of a free branching bush the best for the tree ivies, 

 though most of these last may also be trained into cones with as 

 little trouble as the true climbing sorts. All our pot ivies are grown 

 freely. By that term we intend to imply that they are not starved, 



