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GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



As bedding plants for outdoor display the Darwin 

 Tulips are well and favorably known, and now within 

 recent years, since the discovery that certain varieties 

 are amenable to forcing, we find them becoming niore 

 popular than ever. Market growers are each year giving 

 more attention to them for this purpose, and by careful 

 handling certain kinds are brought mto bloom by the 

 end of February, so that the season during which these 

 lovely flowers are obtainable has been very much length- 

 ened. As cut flowers they stand an easy first amongst 

 the Tulips, being ideal for vases with their long stems 

 which bear erect the cup-shaped flowers, the pleasing 

 colors of which are brought out to perfection under glass. 

 When we consider the Tulip as one of the garden flowers 

 whose history runs back through centuries, the Darwin 

 section appears as a comparatively recent introduction, 

 and as a matter of fact less than one third of a century 

 has elapsed since this beautiful type was introduced into 

 commerce by the noted Holland firm of Krelage & Son. 

 Those who can still aft'ord to grow forced bulbs and have 

 not yet tried the Darwins, would surely be well pleased. 

 There is just one important thing to remember, that none 

 will respond to such hard forcing as the early flowering 

 section. March is their month under glass for beginners. 

 Wm. Copeland, Pride of Haarlem, Bartigon, Mme. 

 Krelage, Clara Butt and Farncombe Sanders are good 

 reliable varieties for the purpose and it is sure to be 

 interesting to experiment with others which are not listed 

 as dead sure forcers. 



;!; % ^ 



A plant which never fails to attract favorable notice, 

 especially when seen growing in the open garden, is 

 Rchmannia angulata, a comparatively new plant from 

 China, which has been well grown by some gardeners 

 as a greenhouse plant. It makes a showy subject for 

 the Summer garden and in the northern States, at any 

 rate, is best treated as a biennial, although in some years 

 I have had new plants start up from pieces of root which 

 had managed to survive the Winter. From this it will 

 be understood that it can be propagated from root cut- 

 tings quite readily, as well as from seeds. Possibly if 

 seeds were sown under glass early in the year, the plants 

 would flower late in the Summer, otherwise it is best 

 perhaps to sow about the same time as Canterbury Bells 

 and winter the plants in a cold frame. The flowers, 

 which might be described as glorified Foxgloves, are 

 borne singly in the axils of leafy stems which may attain 

 to a height of three feet or more. It is a plant which 

 spreads rapidly through the Summer and continues to 

 throw up flowering stems until frost. Ten or a dozen 

 plants grouped together in rich soil will make a very 



attractive showing. 



* * * 



A climbing Rose of which I am very fond is Rosa 

 multifiora, a Japanese Rose of lasting fame as the parent 

 plant from which many of the beautiful climbing va- 

 rieties have originated. While somewhat overshadowed, 

 of course, by its more brilliant oflispring, it is still worth 

 growing for its own good finalities. It is free growmg, 

 the clusters of small white flowers are produced in the 

 utmost profusion, and are followed in due course by an 

 abundance of small bright berries which make it a plant 

 of distinctly ornamental character all through the Winter. 

 It is well worthy of a place in more of our gardens. 



* * * 



Pergolas of varied descriptions and design are becom- 

 ing quite familiar features in gardens both great and 

 small. Usually the plants used to clothe them are purely 

 of an ornamental nature, such as Roses, Clematis and 

 others of a similar character. The Grape Vine is some- 



times used to provide shade and some fruit, and why 

 not a pergola clothed with choice varieties of Apples 

 and Pears? Trained fruit trees are not at all common 

 with us as in Europe for various reasons. We have not 

 so many garden walls for one thing, and some say they 

 would not be suitable for fruit growing in this climate 

 if we had. But there would seem to be no good reason 

 why a pergola might not sometimes be utilized for train- 

 ing fruit trees on at a great economy of space. The 

 ornamental character would show up well at blossoming 

 time in the Spring and later on be combined with utility 

 at the time of ripening fruit. 



* * :i: 



Speaking of fruit trees, there has recently been pub- 

 lished a book entitled "Science and Fruit Growing," which 

 should prove to be of more than ordinary interest to 

 fruit growers everywhere, even though it deals with a 

 series of experiments which have been carried on across 

 the water. It is a book which gives the results of 

 painstaking experiments conducted at the Woburn Ex- 

 perimental Fruit Farm for twenty-five years. Those 

 familiar with English garden papers during this time 

 will doubtless recall periodic outbursts of arguments pro 

 and con as the reports of the experiments were pub- 

 lished from time to time. It would seem that some of 

 the orthodox teaching would need to be somewhat re- 

 vised in the light of results obtained at Woburn, but of 

 course it does not necessarily follow that the general 

 adojjtion of the methods used there would in all cases 

 be as satisfactory. Soil and location are factors which 

 have an important bearing on methods of culture. 



One result which is at variance with accepted teach- 

 ing and practice has to do with the method of planting. 

 This has long been regarded as an operation demanding 

 great care if success is expected, yet the Woburn ex- 

 periments wotfld seem to indicate that we are over care- 

 ful. According to these there is no need to take care in 

 spreading the roots at planting, just cram them under 

 and ram them firmly, or rather real hard. It is stated 

 that trees planted in this manner, though slower in start- 

 ing, eventually outstripped those carefully planted in the 

 ordinary way. It seems to be established beyond doubt - 

 that fruit trees are very much more satisfactory when 

 clean cultivation is practiced and that grass growing di- 

 rectly about the trees, especially when they are young, 

 has a very detrimental efifect. Experiments in manuring 

 and pruning brought forth interesting results. As re- 

 gards the latter, which has long been a good subject 

 for argument amongst gardeners, the experiments justify 

 those who contend that newly planted fruit trees should 

 be pruned before starting into growth, that is pruned 

 the first year. Experiments such as these, conducted 

 along sound, scientific and practical lines, are of the 

 greatest value to all cultivators of a studious turn of 

 mind. 



The land we live in seems to be strong and active. 

 But how fares the land that lives in us? Are we sure 

 that we are doing all we ought to keep it in vigor and 

 health? Are we keeping its roots well surrounded by 

 the fertile soil of loving allegiance, and are we furnish- 

 ing them the invigorating moisture of unselfish fidel- 

 ity? Are we as diligent as we ought to be to protect 

 this precious growth against the poison that must 

 arise from the decay of harmony and honesty and in- 

 dustry and frugality; and are we sufficiently watchful 

 against . . . consuming greed and cankerous 

 cupidity? Our answers to these questions make up 

 the account of our stewardship as keepers of a sacred 



tl USt. — GrOVER Cr.EVELAND. 



