320 THE FLOKAL WOELD AND GAEDEN GUIDE. 



more inclining to sand than to clay, it will answer admirably, and you need rot 

 wait for it to become completely rotten. The shrubs in the piece intended for rho- 

 dodendrons may all be lifted now with perfect safety. 



Evergreens for "Windy Situation. — H. i.— One of the best you can have for 

 an exposed situation is the common spruce, Abies excelsa. To this add any or all 

 of the following : — Ahies Doxiglasi, Cupressus Laivsoni, JKniperns Virginiana, 

 Jnnipertts communis. Common Yew, and Irish Yew ; the dwarf yew, Tc.rtis ad- 

 pressa ; Thuiopsis ho7-ealis, and Thuia occidentalis. Many other tine conifers are 

 suitable, but the foregoing are sure to succeed. Among miocellaneous shrubs, the 

 best are common holly, Berleris aqidfoUum, common box, and round-leaved box ; 

 oval-leaved privet, Ligusti-um ovalifolium, evergreen oak, Qaerciis ilex, double 

 flowering furze, and ivy of many kinds. The beautiful Lauristinus grows freely in 

 many dusty and gusty seaside gardens, but it does not flower freely unless in a warm 

 climate. 



Patchy Lawn.— ^. L. — Your best plan, having sown seed and failed, is to dig 

 over the patchy places at once, and lay down turf If done quickly, the new turf 

 will get hold of the soil before frost sets in. At the end of August would have 

 been a better time for the work. If you cannot do it at once, let it remain as it is 

 till February, and then turf tlie bare places. 



Roses on Skirts of a L.\wn. — H. L. — You may plant roses now with the 

 best advantage. Probably it would be well to have the ground deeply dug and 

 liberally manured first. The principal season for planting roses is November. Do 

 not plant pillar roses under the drip of trees ; dwarfs on their own roots would 

 have a much better chance in such a position. A h-w evergreens, sucli as berberis, 

 yew, holly, and arbor vita ; witli a few deciduous shrubs, such as AYeigelia, Hints 

 cotiiius, red-flowering currant, Persian lilac, and Lonicera fragrantissima, 

 would make a suitable background to the roses, to shut out the view of the wall 

 and road. 



Hebbaceois Plants. — M. N.—l? Delphiniums and Phloxes, which bloom well 

 in almost any soil and situ.ation, do not bloom in your garden, there must be some- 

 thing very bad in the soil, the climate, or the managetnent. A good deep and well- 

 manured loam is the besr for suuh things, and an open sunny position is also 

 desirable. Let the ground be deeply dug and liberally manured, and try again. 

 The white leaves on your camellias probably result from poverty of soil. The best 

 climbers for your arches are Boursault roses, Hybrid rose Eed Rover, Clematis 

 vitalba, and common honeysuckle. It will be advisable to obtain two plants of 

 each kind determined on, and plant them in pairs, as it has a very bad effect to 

 put two sorts of plants to one arch. 



CniMONANTHus FKAGRANS. — 31. F. — This delightfully fragrant and otherwise 

 interesting shrub, cannot be easily propigated by cuttings. But it may be increased 

 by layers or seeds. In the month of September is the best time to make layers, but 

 it is not too late to do so now. Draw down a few branches, and cut a tongue in 

 them, and fix them by means of strong pegs, so that the tongue will be a few inches 

 below the surface, closing them in firmly with soil to finish the operation. Seed 

 sown in March, in a gentle hotbed, will soon germinate, and thus any number of 

 plants may be obtained, and to grow them to flowering size is but a question of 

 time. It is rather tender, and when planted out of doors requires a wall, but the 

 proper place for it; is in a cool conservatory. 



Cartee's Book on Bedding. — J. F. — Messrs. Carter's book does not teach how 

 to cut geometric figures, or how to do anything with them but plant them. If you 

 want the book you must apply to Messrs. Carter. 



Pinks, Carnations, and Picoteks. — G. G. — The garden pink is Dianthus 

 Jiortensis of the botanists, the carnation is Dianthus caryopliyllus, the picotee is a 

 variety of the carnation. The pink is heavilj- coloured in the middle of the petals, 

 and the colouring is called the "lacing." Red, crimson, and purple are the pre- 

 vailing colours. The carnation is marked in flakes or stripes from the base to the 

 margin of the petals. The prevailing colours are rose, carmine, cerise, crimson, 

 and flesh. The picotee is delicately edged with colour, usually in sharp, thin, mar- 

 ginal lines, and the prevailing colours are red, crimson, and rose. They are usually 

 distmguished as "light edged" and "heavy edged," according to the breadth of the 

 marginal lines. 



