34 THE GARDENER. [Jan. 



mas Daisies, to be excluded, and only dwarf - growing subjects admitted? 

 There is also this to be borne in mind, where dwarf-growing Alpine species 

 are grown — namely, their tendency to go olF without leaving a trace behind, 

 excepting the label which tells where the plants used to be. It is consequently 

 necessary to have a duplicate collection in frames to make sure of preserving 

 a stock of these disappointing subjects. Of course there is the alternative of 

 not growing these at all, and it is advisable for gardeners not to do so as a 

 rule ; but it is only fair to bear in mind that the collections trotted out from 

 time to time in ' The Garden ' have an attached stock in frames, and some- 

 times houses of a more expensive character. 



Turning now to what your correspondent has to say as to his experience 

 with tender bedders, and the figures he has so kindly placed at the disposal of 

 your readers, a criticism of which he challenges, permit me in the first place 

 to point out the absurdly large number of plants he employed to fill the border 

 he discusses under the two systems. Allow me to quote the whole of what he 

 says on the numbers of plants raised: ''We had to vary the style of the 

 border every year ; but on the average, the labour and cost were about the 

 same. Sometimes the border was ribboned and sometimes panelled, &c. Our 

 plan, then as now, was to plant autumn-struck Geraniums ' the length of the 

 trowel ' apart each way, or about 9 inches — not more ; and such things as 

 Lobelias, Calceolarias, Verbenas, &c., were planted about 6 inches apart ; 

 while succulents were set nearly touching each other. One way and another, 

 front and back, at least 2400 Geraniums were required, and more when the 

 groundwork was composed of Mangles's variegated Geranium, or other kinds, 

 besides other 3 or 4 rows perhaps. In addition to these, at least 1200 Calceo- 

 larias were used, as Aurantia multiflora and Aurea floribunda, and as much 

 Verbena venosa between these and the Geraniums. This left still near the half 

 of the border to fill, which was perhaps filled up with Lobelia panelled with 

 Geraniums, or vice versd, &c. The Lobelias, we know, came to about 8000, and 

 in front of these are sometimes planted a row of Echeveria secunda glauca. 

 Crimson King Verbena, or any other suitable edging at the time. The total 

 number of plants generally used was about 13,000." The above statement, 

 though somewhat mixed up and wanting in plainness of expression, obviously 

 means that the border which we were told in a previous sentence was 360 feet 

 long by 10 feet wide, took 13,000 plants to fill it, or nearly 4 to every square 

 foot ; that, occasionally, after more than half of the border was filled, 8000 

 Lobelias were panelled with Geraniums in a portion of that front space, and 

 that a suitable edging was used in addition ! That all ordinary bedding- 

 plants were set out at 6 inches apart each way, with the exception of Ger- 

 aniums, which were planted 9 inches apart each way. Now, let us analyse 

 these figures. A border 360 feet in length will require 720 plants at 6 inches 

 apart in the row; 18 such rows will require 12,960 plants. Allowing a space 

 of 4| inches next the box to the first line, and a space of 4^ inches between 

 the back edge and the backmost row of plants, there remains, of the 10-feet 

 border, 17 spaces of Qh inches each between the 18 rows. Next let us take the 

 instance of the 8000 Lobelias (which were panelled with Geraniums in "near 

 the half of the border "), and the suitable edging. " Near the half of the 

 border" would be a little less than 5 feet wide, perhaps 6 inches less, but 

 5 feet will do. Planted at 6 inches in the row, or 720 plants, these 8000 

 Lobelias would fill 11 rows of 6 inches wide, and cover a total space of 360 feet 

 by 5 feet. There remains this query for more ingenious arithmeticians than I 

 can pretend to be, to find where the Geraniums which were panelled with 



