514 



HORTICULTURE 



April 5, 1913 



his index, and Leo H. Grindon in "The 

 Shakespeare's Flora" certainly men- 

 tions a far greater number, it the total 

 of vegetable productions referred to by 

 the great English poet were all taken 

 into account. In some one way it is a 

 pity that this Shakespeare garden is 

 not one by itself, but we must take it 

 as we found it. Among the numerous 

 occupants passing into decay there 

 were many of the ordinary summer 

 occupants of our modern gardens 

 struggling in their last effort to make 

 a show. We did not trouble to ask 

 ourselves if these were Shakespeare's 

 flowers for they were tallied with long 

 white labels that the English gardener 

 commonly employs. 



But what we did notice was another 

 type of label, a little green-painted 

 square tablet with the word "Shakes- 

 peare" painted on the top. Then be- 

 neath that the common name of the 

 plant with its Latin equivalent. We 

 may of course have missed some but 

 when our search was over we came to 

 the conclusion that the so-called 

 Shakespeare garden was Just a little 

 pretentious if not actually misleading. 

 This is what we found there: 



Heath (Erica carnea). 



Hyssop (Hyssopus oflBcinalis). 



Rosemary (Rosmarinus offlcinalis). 



Pansy (Viola tricolor). 



Daisy (Bellis perennis). 



Heath (Erica yulgaris). 



Anemone (Anemone nemprosa). 



Thyme (Thymus vulgaris). 



Gillyflower (carnation). 



Lark's-heel (Delphinium ajacis). 



Scarlet Pimpernel (Anagallis Brewerii). 



Cowslip (Primula offlcinalis). 



Violet (Viola odorata). 



Camomile (Anthemis nobilis). 



Oxlip (Primula elatlor). 



Saffron Crocus (Crocus sativus). 



Columbine (Aquilegia vulgaris). 



Hemp (Cannabis sativa). 



Poppy (Papaver somniferum). 



Parsley (Petroselinum sallvum). 



Rue (Ruta sraveolcus). 



Mandrake (Mandragora autumnalis). 



Mint (Mentha viridis). 



This, as far as we could see, was all 

 there were. There may have been 

 others but if so they were not distin- 

 guished by the special label and it oc- 

 curred to us that there would not have 

 been much diflBculty in enlarging the 

 number if there were any necessity for 

 having a Shakespeare garden at all. 

 If only intended as a curiosity — well 

 there it Is. 



C. Harman Pa'tne. 



PRIMROSES AS ROCKERY PLANTS. 



Hfds of Hardy Primroses in the Rock Garden, Goodwin Estate, Hartford. Conu. 



PROPAGATING FERNS. 



Multiplication of ferns is effected in 

 several ways, depending principally 

 upon the types. Propagation by spores 

 Is the most general. By this method 

 consideration must be given to the 

 preparation of the soil. Most soils 

 contain the lowest forms of plant life, 

 such as mosses, liverworts, and the 

 various confervoid growths, which veg- 

 etate as quickly as the spores of the 

 ferns and thereby choke the prothallus 

 In Its early stages, and these must be 

 eliminated by sterilization. Loam and 

 leaf mold in equal parts with some 

 finely broken brick, make an Ideal 

 mixture. Shallow pans are most con- 

 venient to use. They should be thor- 

 oughly drained with either broken pots 

 or cinders, and these covered with a 

 layer of sphagnum. The pans are then 



filled to within one-half inch of the top 

 with the mixture and pressed down 

 firmly and smoothly. A thorough wat- 

 ering should then be given by Im- 

 mersing the pans up to their rims in 

 a vessel of water, allowing them to 

 drain off for an hour or so before sow- 

 ing. The spores should then be 

 sprinkled thinly and evenly on the sur- 

 face, for, if crowded, the prothallia 

 are very liable to dampen off. The 

 pans are then plunged in sand or fine 

 ashes, in a shaded section of the prop- 

 agating frame, where the atmospheric 

 conditions may be controlled to a 

 great extent. Cover the pans with 

 panes of glass tilted to one side to 

 avoid the drip from the condensed 

 moisture on the glass. 



Great care must be taken in moist- 

 ening the soil in order to insure suc- 

 cess. If it is allowed to become too 

 dry it means absolute failure in the 

 germination of the fern spores; there- 

 fore, great caution will have to be 

 used by the grower, especially during 

 the periods of heavy firing that we 

 experience at this season. Keeping 

 the plunging material damp between 

 the pans will usually supply the neces- 

 sary moisture, but if the soil in the 

 pans should show the least signs of 

 becoming dry, take them out and water 

 from the bottom by standing them in 

 a bucket or other vessel containing 

 three or four inches of water and leav- 

 ing them there until thoroughly 

 soaked. 



When the prothallia develop into 

 very minute plants — a stage that var- 

 ies considerably with different ferns in 



the time taken to reach it — the glass 

 covers may be removed to harden the 

 seedlings before pricking off. A few 

 days later, prick off into other pans 

 filled with similar soil. They may 

 then be watered with a fine rose. Keep 

 a close watch for slugs, as they have a 

 wonderful appetite for young fern 

 fronds. 



Many failures in germinating some 

 of the rare kinds of ferns may be at- 

 tributed to harvesting the spores at 

 the wrong time. The fronds should 

 be examined at frequent intervals 

 when they are about to ripen and with 

 the aid of a hand magnifying glass 

 when it is seen that the cases are 

 about to burst or when the sori begin 

 to turn brown, cut off the frond and 

 place between two sheets of white pa- 

 per to dry. In a few days the spores' 

 will have fallen from the frond; if not, 

 rub gently between the fingers and 

 they will become released. 



Several species of Pteris are easily 

 raised from spores; among them are 

 P. cretica albo-lineata, P. tremula, P. 

 quadriaurita. 



Many species of Adiantum vegetate 

 very rapidly from spores. Crytomium 

 falcatum and C. Fortunei, used exten- 

 sively for decorating purposes, are 

 raised from spores, as are also Lomar- 

 ia gibbi and L. ciliata, and many others 

 too numerous to mention. 



Other methods of propagation are 

 by division of crowns and rhizomes. 

 The viviparous ferns are increased by 

 sinking the pots up to their rims in a 

 suitable mixture of soil, so that the 

 fronds provided with the bulbils are 

 easily pegged down and encouraged to 

 make roots quickly. When a sufficient 

 supply of roots are made to self-sup- 

 port the plantlets, they may be sepa- 

 rated from the frond and potted sep- 

 arately into small pots. 



RICHARD J. HAYDEN. 



