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THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA. 



as they are, through a Hberal use of the shears. Any- 

 thing which will grow that way naturall}' is beautiful, 

 and nature herself has decided as to what plant species 

 should take on such forms, the Norway and Blue 

 Spruces, for instance, which could hardly be imagined 

 in any other form — although Spruces closely planted have 

 of late been tried as hedge subjects with varying success. 



Shrubs, whether planted for ornamental foliage ef- 

 fects or as flowering subjects, should be allowed to 

 follow irregular outlines. With the gradual disappear- 

 ance of formal flower beds, shrub borders of irregular 

 character have come into popular use, and such would 

 be anything but pleasing did they contain specimens 

 of the clipped to geometric-shape type. 



When shrubs have made such rampant growth that 

 their flowering shoots are mainly at the top. it is high 

 time to do some vigorous cutting back. If this is done 

 early in summer a quantity of near shoots will be 

 formed during the season, and inside of two years a 

 very respectable appearance will result. Shrubs which 

 have become too large for their positions, undul}- over- 

 lap a walk or drive, or have become obstructive in any- 

 way, may be changed in form to meet required condi- 



tions by a judicious cutting back, but in most cases it 

 is not well to do the work all at once. In one season 

 a portion of the objectionable growth only should be 

 removed, the branches near the center of a bush ; the 

 result will be the pushing out from the base of a num- 

 ber of strong shoots, which will, in a short time, fill up 

 the gap made by the thinning of the branches. The 

 following season the rest of the overgrowth may be 

 removed, or as much of it as is likely to be replaced by 

 new growth, and by degrees the desired symmetry will 

 have been obtained. 



The idea of pruning is to produce new growth to 

 take the place of the old continually, and to keep a 

 subject within bounds and of the required form. 



It is a good plan now to go over the Rhododendrons 

 and remove the remains of the flowers. The stubs 

 are easily pinched out by the thumb and forefinger, 

 and their removal will allow of new leaf heads form- 

 ing at the base of the flower stems. Such attention is 

 well rewarded by many additional growths which fill 

 up gaps caused by defoliation or breakage of branches, 

 and improve the appearance of a specimen ma- 

 teriallv. • 



American Sweet Pea Society Annual Convention and Exhibition 



The exhibition of the American Sweet Pea Society 

 held in Boston, July 12 and 13, was easily the best 

 this new and aggressive society has yet held, both 

 in the number of exhibits, keenness in competition, de- 

 velopment in artistic arrangement, and quality. The 

 show just past was undoubtedly superior to any Sweet 

 Pea show ever held in the East. 



While a number of growers living near Boston 

 showed well, the finest number of high-grade flowers 

 came from Newport, Lenox, Bar Harbor, Manchester, 

 Mass., and other points where ocean breezes and 

 mountain air with cold nights gave the sweet peas 

 greater vigor and a longer season than they have 

 further inland. Exhibits were forthcoming from Con- 

 necticut, Maine, Rhode Island, New York, New Hamp- 

 shire, and Massachusetts, which could not be consid- 

 ered bad for so comparatively fragile a flower as the 

 sweet pea, and at the very hottest period of the year. 



A pleasant feature of the show was the good compe- 

 tition in the amateur, children, and school classes, 

 some fine flowers being shown in these departments. 

 We are apt to get too much of the purely professional 

 in exhibitions, and the societies would do well to en- 

 courage the amateur element more. Then the estates 

 department showed the manifold uses to which the 

 sweet pea can be put. The retailers, as a rule, seemed 

 to vie with each other, however, in using too many 

 flowers, and at the late show the fine amateurs beat 

 them both in the basket and table decorations and 

 vases with more airy and lighter arrangements. 



The circular flower garden by Messrs. R. & J. Far- 

 quhar & Co., conceived and carried out by James Far- 

 quhar, was the best of its kind I have seen at any 

 American Sweet Pea exhibition, and shows how 

 attractive shows of this popular flower*can be made. 

 Their garden could be entered from four sides through 

 trellised arbors covered with Countess Spencer peas 

 arranged in bottles inconspicuous in size, but holding 

 just enough water to. keep the flowers fresh. In the 

 center was a fountain playing, and in the pool were 

 light and graceful aquatic plants. The border sur- 

 rounding this, as well as the outer borders, was taste- 

 fully arranged with sweet peas, Selaginella in light 



pans, frame-work and hanging vines. The whole had 

 a most charming effect, and seemed fit for the Morse 

 silver cup for the finest seedsman's display. 



The display of W. Atlee Burpee & Co., arranged by 

 George W. Kerr, was the most extensive in the hall, 

 and was beautifully arranged. Tall bamboos in the 

 back took away any appearance of flatness, and about 

 125 varieties were included. A few of the more strik- 

 ing were the Illuminator, Salmon Rose (a new Bur- 

 pee seedling awarded a first class certificate). Charm, 

 Decorator, Orchid, Irish Belle, Florence Nightingale, 

 Barbara Dorothy, Marguerite Madison, Asta Ohn, 

 Helen Grosvenor, Frank Dolly, Perdita, Hellen Lewis, 

 Charles Foster, Vermillion Brilliant, Thomas Steven- 

 son, Stirling Stent, W'hite Spencer. Mrs. Sankey Spen- 

 cer, America Spencer, Marie Cirelli, Scarlet Emperor, 

 John Ingman, Dazzler, Radiance, and Lady Evelyn 

 E3^re. This collection received the gold medal offered 

 for the most meritorious display of sweet peas in the 

 hall. 



Arthur T. Boddington put up a grand display taste- 

 fully arranged. He had better quality flowers than 

 the other seedsmen and it was a pity that they were 

 without names. 



Apart from the sweet pea, there were quite a num- 

 ber of attractive exhibits, including groups of orchids 

 from W. A. Manda, Julius Roehrs Co.. F. J. Dolansky, 

 J. F. Butterworth, and Mrs. J. L. Gardner (William 

 Thatcher, gardener) ; hardy herbaceous plants from 

 the Eastern nurseries, Liliums myriophyllum and 

 Thayeroe from Farquhar & Co.. Liliums Maculatum 

 from the Mt. Desert nurseries, gladiola in fine variety 

 from B. Hammond Tracey and John Lewis Childs, 

 hollyhocks from Col. L. Mason (E. L. Lewis, gar- 

 dener), tubrous begonias from Mrs. Lester Leland 

 (E. H. Wetherlew, gardener), and Japanese iris from 

 F. Kennedy. 



At the annual meeting of the American Sweet Pea 

 Society the following officers were elected for the en- 

 suing year : President, William Sim, of Cliftondale, 

 Mass.; vice-president, Arthur Kirby, of New York; 

 secretary, H. A. Bunyard, of New York; treasurer, 

 Arthur T. Boddington, of New York; recording secre- 



