326 



GARDENING. 



July 15, 



thrives perfectly in open sunshine.— Ed.] 

 Inula ensifolia is now in bloom. It 

 is like a single daisy, with yellow center 

 and lavender rav florets. I suppose the 

 beauty of the plant must be when it has 

 formed large clumps and is covered with 

 flowers. Looking at mv year old plants 

 from seed, I cannot see anything to justify 

 the exaggerated encomiums I have read 

 in some catalogues. 



Pentstemon barbatus, TORREvi and 

 P. spECiosrs. With their long upright 

 spikes of brilliant vermilion pendent 

 flowers, these make a fine show. But 1 

 can see no difference between the two, 

 except that speciosus is a little larger. 

 Has the sin of substitution been prac- 

 tised upon me at the nursery? They are 

 not troubled bv insects. {Pentsmon spe- 

 ciosus is a very beautiful blue flowered 

 plant and has nothing to do with barba- 

 tus or Torrev/.— Ed ] 



BoccoNiA CORDATA. What a grand 

 display large clumps of this are now mak- 

 ing with their tall panicles of feathery 

 white flowers. But what a fearful 

 spreader it is from the roots. I have 

 never found an insect of any kind on it. 



[A. fine bold plant and very hardy, but 

 a pestiferous one so far as spreading at 

 the root is concerned, in fact while excel- 

 lent to naturalize in wild places where 

 one would use the tawny day lily it is a 

 subject we should disadvise our readers 

 introducing into their flower borders. 

 Seeds are slow to start, but with care 

 and patience we can get up a stock of 

 plants in this way; from division or 

 pieces of the roots "is the usual mode of 

 propagation.— Ep.] L. C. L. Jordan. 



Bergen- Point, N. J., July G, 1S96. 



RfllSlNO HftRDY FERENNIfllS FROM SEED. 



The raising of hardy perennials and 

 biennials from seed is quite an interesting 

 work for amateurs and one that all lovers 

 offiowers should indulge in. The most 

 of these plants are of easy culture and as 

 no greenhouse is needed the amateur with 

 small means can do it just as good as the 

 gardener with a lot ot glasshouses. We 

 raise a great many of them here and find 

 it verv interesting work. Some may 

 think that it is a long time to wait to see 

 these plants bloom, but if a few are sown 

 every year vou will always have some- 

 thing new to look at from eariy spring 

 till late in fall. It is also a cheap way to 

 fill your garden with choice plants that 

 will last for years. 



The way I raise them is quite simple 

 and still successful. I use small boxes 

 twelve inches by ten, and two inches 

 deep. In the bottom of the boxes I put 

 soil that has been put through a half inch 

 sieve, say three parts loam to one of old 

 rotted manure; put an inch and half of 

 this in bottom of box, then fine prepared 

 soil that has been put through a quarter 

 inch sieve on top, filling the box level, 

 then press it down firm with a small piece 

 of board and sow the seeds. If the seeds 

 are very small I use a small sieve made 

 of fly netting to put the soil through to 

 cover the seeds. Have the soil you cover 

 with as open as possible, for instance soil 

 with leaf mould and old mushroom 

 manure freelv mixed I find the best, but 

 any open soi'l will do. After the seeds are 

 sown and lightly covered press them 

 down firmly with a board and the work 

 is done. 1 then put the boxes in a shady 

 frame and keep it close till the little seed- 

 lings appear, then remove them to more 

 light and let them have plenty of air. 

 When they are large enough I prick 

 them into other boxes and put them in a 

 shady part of the garden, but not under 

 the siiadc of trees, asthcrc they will draw 



too much, they can then be handled at any 

 time. . . 



Some gardeners sow the seed right in 

 the frame, I have tried both ways and 

 find boxes the best to sow in, as the dif- 

 ferent varieties of seeds do not all come 

 up at once and you can remove them 

 from the close frame to more airy quar- 

 ters as soon as the seeds come up, whereas 

 if sown in a frame you would have to 

 give them all the same treatment. If 

 boxes are not handy at prickingoff time, 

 a prepared bed will do as well, making it 

 in some half shadv spot in the garden, 

 and shading the plants for a few days 

 when the sun is on them. About the 15th 

 of September plant them in the garden 

 where thev are to bloom, or if the garden 

 is full of'summer flowering plants put 

 them in beds in the vegetable garden to 

 be planted out in eariy spring and give 

 them a light covering of strawy manure 

 to keep sudden changes of the weather 

 awav from them. 



I will now give the name of some varie- 

 ties that will give you a good show of 

 flowers from earlv spring till late in the 

 fall, naming them as they flower through 

 the season. 



Alyssum saxatile, this growsabout one 

 foot high and has a mass of bright golden 

 yellow flowers. 



Dianthus barbatus (sweet william), a 

 common flower but one of our best early 

 summer flowering plants. 



Delphiniums, both double and single, 

 these grow three to five feet high and the 

 colors run through all shades of blue to 

 white. 



,4qu//cg-;a (columbine), these grow one 

 to four feet high and the colors run from 

 deep blue to white. 



Salvia argentea, this has large silvery 

 leaves and handsome spikes of pure white 

 flowers three feet high. 



Verbascum Phlomoides grows five feet 

 high and has large spikes of yellow flow- 

 ers. It is a biennial. 



Oriental poppies, these grows about 

 three feet high and have large scarlet 

 flowers. 



Campanula persicsefolia, this grows 

 about three feet high and has large 

 bell shaped flowers, white and blue. 

 Campanula Traclielium, about4, feet high 

 with large spikes of purple flowers. 

 Campanula rotundilolia, one foot high, 

 clusters of blue flowers, Canterbury-bells, 

 grow about three feet high, flowers bell 

 shaped; all colors from deep blue to pure 

 white, biennial. 



Gvpsophila paniculata, two feet high, 

 has" graceful small white flowers and is 

 fine for cutting. 



Digitalis, fox gloves, four feet high, all 

 colors except blue. 



Gaillardia, mixed varieties, grow one 

 and one-half feet high, color red and 

 yellow. 



Platycodon grandiHorum three feet 

 high, showy spikes of blue flowers, P/atj- 

 codon Mariesi, one foot high, flowers 

 also blue or white. 



Rudbeckia speciosa, 3 feet high, yellow 

 flowers. 



Agrostemma F/os-/ov/s, eighteen inches 

 high, pink flowers. 



Hollyhock grows six feet high, all 

 colors, single and double. 



CEnothera (Lamarckiana) , three feet, 

 large yellow flowers, biennial. 



Lrcbnis Haageana, mixed hybrids, one 

 foot high all shades of white and red. 

 Lychnis Chalcedonica, three feet, scarlet 

 pink or white flowers. 



Po(eHty//a, mixed varieties, grows about 

 two feet high. 



Anemone Japonica, two feet, red or 

 white flowers. 



These if sown now will give good sized 

 plants for next year's work. The Canter- 

 bury bells would be the better of a frame 

 over them in the winter. Pansies daisies, 

 and forget-me-nots will not need to be 

 sown till near the end of August. 



David Fkaskk. 



Mountain Side Farm, Mahwah, .\. J. 



PRINCIPAL BEDDING PlflNTS USED IN C«l- 

 OflOO PARKS AND GARDENS. 



FLOWKKING PLANTS. 



The geranium is more largely used than 

 any other genus, and the leading vari.- 

 ties noted are: 

 Single white: Mrs. G. M Garr. 

 Semi-double white: Mine. A. delaClicv- 

 alier. La Favorite. 



Single pink: Ben Schroeder, the best of 

 its color. 



Semi-double pink: Emile de Girardin, 

 Mme. Messenger. 



Single bright scarlet: Gen. Grant, Rev. 

 Watkins, Meteor, Gettysburg, Glory of 

 Poitevine, W. A. Chalfant. 



Single rosy scarlet: Alfred Tennyson, 

 probably the best single red geranium. 



Semi-double bright scarlet: Pres. Leon 

 Simon, one of the best, Mme. Bruant, 

 Guillan Mongelle. 

 Semi-double rosy scarlet: J. K. Lowell. 

 Semi-double dark red: S. A. Nutt, a de- 

 cided favorite. 



Single salmon or shrimp pink: Beauty 

 of Poitevine, Mrs. E. G. Hill, Gloire d"e 

 Caboiay. 

 Semi-double salmon: Dr. Jacoby. 

 Variegated leaved: Moi-ntain of Snow, 

 Earl Roslyn, Mme. Salleroi. 

 Sweet scented: Rose geranium. 

 Other flowering plants used include: 

 Ageratum, var. Cope's Pet. 

 Alyssum, Tom Thumb. 

 Asters, mostly of the Victoria strain. 

 Begonias Vernon and semperflorens. 

 Browallia elata. 

 Candytuft, giant strain. 

 Celosia or cockscomb, var. Tlionip- 

 sonii and dwarf Pres. Thiers. 

 Calendula, in variety. 

 Cornflowers in many shades and colors. 

 Daisy, Queen of Belgium. 

 Dianthus, var. Heddewiegii. 

 English daisies. 

 Feverfew. 



Globe amaranth, both white and crim- 

 son. 



Hollyhocks, double and single and in 

 many colors. 



Helianthus. in variety, but mostly the 

 double perennial. 

 Lobelia, var. Paxtoniana and lirinns. 

 Marigold, var. tall African, both lemon 

 yellow and orange colored. 

 Marigold, var. French. 

 Mignonette, var. Machet. 

 Nasturtium, var. Dwarf and Lobb's 

 tall. 

 Pansies in many popular strains. 

 Petunias, single in plain, blotched and 

 frilled varieties. 



Phlox Drummundi, and var. Star of 

 Ouedlinberg. 

 Salvia splendens. 

 Snapdragons, mixed colors. 

 Ten weeks stock, in variety. 

 Torenia Fournieri compacta. 

 Vinca rosea and var. alba 

 Verbena, white, scarlet, dark red and 

 pink. Nearly every gardener has a set 

 selected from unnamed seedlings and 

 propagated by cuttings. 



Zinnias, in variety especially scarlet 

 shades of velvety texture but nameless, 

 being selected seedlings kept distinct and 

 reproduced from seed. 

 Zinnia, var. the new dwarf. 

 Cannas hold an important place in 

 summer bedding in and around Chicago 



