i8o 



GARDENING. 



Mar. I, 



•wistaria, trumpet creeper and actinidia 

 will run any height; but while the first 

 three are showy in bloom the last named 

 is not. The Chinese bignonia (B. grandi- 

 Bora). running honeysuckles, climbing 

 waxwork, white fleecy clematis and some 

 others would do very well where they 

 didn't have to get up on the roof, but 

 both akebia and Virginia creeper would 

 run up there with very little trouble. 



VINES FOR SUMMER HOUSE. 



E. H. J., Spokane, Wash., writes: "I 

 purpose building on my country place a 

 summer house or arbor 16 feet in diam- 

 eter, octagonal in shape. Please inform 

 me what climbers to plant so as to thor- 

 oughly cover both sides and roof with 

 vines, and how far apart to plant them. 

 I wish as great a variety as possible." 



To run around the eaves and spread 

 over the roof the Chinese wistaria is good. 

 The trumpet vine can be led up to do the 

 same thing. Both the akebia and actini- 

 dia will grow fast and nm over the roof, 

 so will the silk vine, but they haven't the 

 massive fullness of the wistaria, trumpet 

 vine or "flowering" grape. You must 

 depend upon your angle or comer posts 

 for variety; against tach of them, or if 

 you prefer it in the middle between the 

 posts, plant a strong root of a vine that 

 will grow thick from the ground up, for 

 instance Hall's honeysuckle, the varie- 

 gated Vitis beterophy'Ua, and several cle- 

 matises as Flammula, montana grandi- 

 Sora and paniculata among the fleecy 

 white ones, and Henrj'i and Jackmannii 

 among the large flowered sorts. A big 

 tubers of cinnamon vine planted in the 

 same hole as the wistaria will clothe the 

 latter's stem, and the same may be said 

 of Ipowasa pandiirata, but you must 

 have a big root of the last named else it 

 is a slow plant. And if you had patience 

 to wait for it a good plant of climbing 

 hydrangea pinned to one of the comers 

 would, after a few years, be a permanent 

 omament. Plant one or two strong 

 plants at each comer. The Virginia 

 creeper would cover the house very quickly 

 and prettily, but you may think it too 

 common. 



THE TWELVE BEST CflNNflS. 



Than cannas as summer blooming 

 plants there is nothing more effective, 

 particularly when planted in largemasses. 

 Since the introduction of Madame Crozy 

 a few years ago, constant improvements 

 have been made, and there is an endless 

 variation when grown from seed. Until 

 within a year or two the best of the 

 varieties had been produced in France by 

 M. Crozy, who sent out Mme. Crozy, 

 His success in raising seedlings has stimu- 

 lated growers all over the world, and the 

 result has been a wonderful improvement 

 in cannas during the last few years. The 

 best varieties of one year are being rapidly 

 superseded by marked improvements the 

 next, so that varieties which were valua- 

 ble a year or two ago are being super- 

 seded by new and improved sorts. 



We have tested cannas very exhaus- 

 tively, and believe the twelve varieties 

 named below come to be as near the very 

 best twelve sorts in cultivation as it is 

 possible to name at this writing. Half of 

 them are new seedlings which will be 

 offered this year for the first time; and 

 half the most distinct of the previous 

 introductions. 



Eldorado.— Undoubtedly this is the 

 best yellow canna; flower of the largest 

 size, habit perfect. In every way it is as 

 good as the best improved red varieties. 



A good variety in yellow has been lacking 

 until the introduction of this sort. 



F. R. PiERSON (Golden Heart). -Prob- 

 ably the most perfect canna ever raised. 

 Petals are broad and overlap one another. 

 Color, an intense brilliant scarlet, very 

 vivid, with golden pencilings in the heart 

 of the flower. The petals recurve, giving 

 the entire head a compact appearance. 

 When the trusses are fully expanded, they 

 make immense globular heads of scarlet. 

 Experts who have examined this canna 

 pronounced it the finest they have ever 

 seen. It is very superior to any other 

 variety of similar color in every wa}', 

 compact growth, size of flower, exquisite 

 coloring, large size of truss, and free 

 blooming nature. 



SuNSHLNE.— Deep orange suffused with 

 scarlet with a delicate fringe of gold 

 around the petal. The name Sun- 

 shine was suggested on account of the 

 flowers being covered with a brilliant 

 satinj' sheen which reflects the sun- 

 light.' It is by far the best variety of 

 this shade of color and a great improve- 

 ment on Paul Marquant, which it some- 

 what resembles, but its flowers are much 

 larger. It produces the largest truss of 

 bloom and largest individual flower, 

 some of the flowers measuring as much as 

 six inches across. It is an unusually free 

 bloomer, dwarf in habit, and a beautiful 

 thing in every way. 



Columbia. — \ gem among cannas; an 

 American seedling, and probably taking 

 everything into account, themost distinct 

 canna that has been disseminated since 

 the introduction of Mme. Crozy. It is a 

 strong grower, but short and stocky . The 

 most striking characteristic ot the plant 

 is its branching habit, sometimes it has 

 three or four trusses of bloom on the same 

 spike, and all open at the same time, pro- 

 ducing a mass of bloom of an even height. 

 Color rich cardinal red. The petals have 

 remarkable substance, lasting upon the 

 truss longer than those ol any other 

 variety. What is wanted in cannas are 

 flowers that have the ability to stand 

 wind and rain and are not easily marred. 

 This comes nearer to meeting this require- 

 ment than any other variety up to this 

 time. 



Queen Charlotte.— Very striking, 

 beautiful and distinct. Unquestionabh- 

 the finest Oerman novelty of the year. 

 Center of the flower is bright scarlet bor- 

 dered with a band of pure gold encircling 

 each petal. 



Oriole.— Exceedingly showy. Similar 

 in color to Queen Charlotte, but a stronger 

 grower, freer bloomer, and it has larger 

 flowers and larger heads of bloom. The 

 center of the flower is bright scarlet 

 with broad edge of yellow, but not so 

 wide as in Queen Charlotte, the scarlet 

 and yellow blending more, and producing 

 a more brilliant eftect. Tested alongside 

 of Queen Charlotte, it showed two or 

 three times as manj' flowers, and will 

 surpass that variety for bedding purposes. 

 Its petals measure four inches in length 

 and are the longest of any variety, in 

 fact the extraordinary length of the 

 petals makes them seem narrow, whereas 

 the}' are as broad as those of almost any 

 other sort. 



Florence Vaughan.— The finest and 

 most beautiful mottled variety; yellow 

 ground with scarlet spots. .\ perfect 

 canna in habit of growth and size of 

 flower, bearing large trusses and very 

 perfect blooms. 



Charles Henderson.— .\n exquisite 

 canna of about the same color as Alphonse 

 Bouvier, but entirely different in head of 

 bloom, which is erect and compact, also 

 in habit of growth, which is identical 



with Mme. Crozy. This variety was in- 

 troduced last year for the first in any 

 quantity, and it has proven to be a bet- 

 ter bedder than was supposed. When 

 tested at the World's Fair at Chicago, it 

 was claimed that it was too late, but our 

 experience with it in tests last summer 

 was that it was one of the showiest of all 

 the cannas, exceeding Bouvier if anything 

 when bedded out. As a pot plant, it 

 leaves nothing to be desired in that color, 

 which is crimson. It is an ideal variety. 



Mme. Crozv.— This canna is now so 

 well known as to need no comment, but 

 it is one of the best yet. It was its 

 introduction that popularized this class 

 of plants, and led up to its improvement. 



Alphonse Bouvier. — A very strong 

 grower, and for bedding purposes unsur- 

 passed. Color, dark crimson. Very free,, 

 early bloomer, and very effective for out- 

 door bedding. 



Egandale.— Thisis probably, all things- 

 considered, the freest bloomer of the dark 

 leaved varieties. Its flowers too are dark. 

 It IS a fast grower, and Al bedding sort. 



J. E. Cabos— A metallic bronze-leaved 

 variety with orange colored flowers, flow- 

 ers and foliage harmonizing and blending, 

 making a very eflective bedder. It is one 

 of the freest bloomers, and on account of 

 its distinct color is a general favorite. 

 F. R. Pierson. 



Tarrvtown, N. Y., Feb. 12, 1895. 



NOTES ON DflHLIflS. 



One of the most simple methods of 

 starting dahlias in the spring is to take 

 the dry roots and lay them on the ground 

 in a warm sunny spot about May 1 and 

 cover them with sand or light soil; this 

 will allow them to start into growth. 

 When the young growth appears take up 

 the old root and divide it into pieces, 

 each one having a single eye, then plant 

 them in good rich soil not closer than 

 three feet apart each way; if planted 

 closer they will run up spindling. This 

 treatment applies only to double flowered 

 sorts or very fine named single ones. The 

 latter will give much better satisfaction 

 if grown from seed, as they begin flower- 

 ing much sooner than plants from dry 

 roots. 



The seed should be sown as soon as 

 danger of frost is past in a bed, and when 

 the seedlings are large enough transplant 

 them where they are to bloom. All seed- 

 lings oteither single or double sorts will 

 as a rule flower longer and better than 

 plants from old tubers, and so will young 

 plants that have been grown from cut- 

 tings, but this latter plan is out of the 

 question for amateurs who are without 

 a greenhouse. To those who have prop- 

 agating facilities I may state that all you 

 have to do is to put the drj' roots in a 

 good warm place, water them thoroughly 

 once and after that only moderately until 

 the roots start to grow. Then make the 

 cuttings two or three joints long with a 

 heel, and place them in the propagating 

 bench the same as any other cuttings. In 

 about thirty days you have them rooted, 

 then pot them singly intoSinch pots and 

 repot as needed. 



Dahlias will do well in most any soil, 

 light or heavy, if yours is light a slight 

 mulch during July and August will be of 

 great benefit to them; use straw, hay or 

 any litter which you may have handy. 



As to varieties one must choose accord- 

 ing to fancy. I have found the following 

 ver\- satisfactory': 



White, Snowball, Camelliseflora, White 

 Dove. 



Yellow, Miss Dodd, Golden Bedder, 

 Oriole. 



