190 



GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



Lawn-making and repairing bare patches should be com- 

 pleted forthwith. Evergreens that are being kept shaped 

 should be gone over with the shears just as the growth 

 starts. Plantations of evergreen can still be made, 

 and the work should be pushed ahead with all possible 

 speed, before active growth starts, or much of the young 

 growth may suffer from the effects of transplanting. 

 Deciduous shrubs and trees may still be planted, and as 

 the majority of them are now either in leaf or bursting 

 buds the planting should be completed at the earliest 

 possible moment. Early flowering shrubs should be 

 pruned as soon as they are through flowering. 



A heavy mulch of manure applied to the rose beds will 

 be of great benefit to them in the form of better quality 

 flowers, and while mentioning roses we might say that 

 it is not too late to have a rose garden this year. 



If prompt action is taken one may enjoy an abundance 

 of blooms next month. Good strong field-grown plants 

 potted last fall are obtainable at reasonable prices. They 

 will be in full growth when you receive them and ready 

 to go right ahead, and flower freely if planted with rea- 

 sonable care. 



With much of the bedding stock out in the frames 

 hardening off previous to planting out, there will be an 

 opportunity of preparing for ne.xt Winter's supply of cut 

 flowers. Carnation plants should be set out in the field, 

 and kept pinched, and cultivated regularly. In the mean- 

 time the house they are to occupy may be cleaned, and 

 painted in readiness for them. Cleanliness is an impor- 

 tant factor in the cultivation of winter flowering plants, 

 and success in a measure depends upon the preparation of 

 the house. This is even more true of roses, and the 

 benches the plants are to occupy, should be thoroughly 

 cleaned and painted with hot whitewash, before putting 

 in the new soil. Remember too that a very great deal 

 depends on the quality of the soil. Sod that has been 

 stacked for a year or two is to be preferred if one has a 

 choice, but if not freshly cut sod from an old pasture, 

 when well broken up will suit roses very well. 



Hard-wooded plants such as Genistas, Acacias, etc., 

 should now be placed in a protected place outside where 

 the wood will ripen. Begonias, ("iloxinias and other 

 flowering plants grown in the greenhouse during Sum- 

 mer should be fed freely. Cyclamen and primulas may 

 be placed in a cold frame and slightly shaded. A batch 

 of English frame cucumbers may be grown in the green- 

 house during the Summer. Chrysanthemums should be 

 potted on as required. Keej) them growing right along, 

 for once checked they never produce first class flowers. 



Melons for Summer forcing should be started at once. 



SALVIAS FOR THE GARDEN 

 S. R. Candler 



VERY few groups of plants are so little known and 

 appreciated for their use in the garden as the 

 Salvias. These belong to that well known family 

 of plants, Labiatcc. from which we are supplied with 

 so many gems of the garden. 



The four Salvias I wish to speak of as of special 

 value for their utility and easiness of culture are : — 

 Salvia farinacea; S. uliginosa; S. aznrea i^raiidifiora and 

 S. patens. All are herbaceous perennials but shall be 

 treated as annuals with the exception of Salvia aziirea 

 grandiflora which, although a native of Mexico, is per- 

 fectly hardy. 



Salzw. farinacea. The seeds should be sown in the 

 hot bed or in the warm greenhouse about the end of 

 March, and as soon as the seedlings are large enough 

 to handle should be pricked off into boxes about 3 inches 

 apart ; these seedlings should be kept growing in a 



warm temperature and gradually hardened off till they 

 are ready to be planted in the open ground in May, 

 when they should be planted in a good soil with a sunny 

 location, about 18 inches each way apart. In July they 

 will be one mass of lavender blue flowers. 



The great beauty of this plant is in the flowers, as the 

 corolla and the calyx are of the same color, and when the 

 former drops the calyx remains and gives the appearance 

 of a sprig of the English Lavender (but lacks its per- 

 fume). Sah'ia farinacea is of importance as a cut flower; 

 it lasts a long time when cut and placed in water, but it 

 should always be planted for effect in bold masses. 



Salvia uliginosa. The seeds and seedlings should have 

 the same treatment as 6". farinaeea, but with this dif- 

 ference : the plants should always be allowed two feet 

 each way when planting and should have a well manured 

 soil ; they also like a dry location. 



This Salvia is the last of the Salvias to come into 

 flower but it continues to flower till late fall ; it will grow 

 to a height of 4 to 5 feet and therefore should not be 

 planted in front of the border but at the back. It is a 

 most profuse bloomer and the flower tresses are from 

 eight to ten inches in length and are of a pretty corn- 

 flower blue with a little white in the throat, a most dis- 

 tinct color in Salvias. No Salvia is so useful for massed 

 effect in the border, and while it is a good cut flower 

 it does not equal S. farinacea in that respect. 



Salvia azurca grandiflora. In the seedling stage this 

 plant requires the same treatment as the above mentioned, 

 but once you have a good supply it will remain with you 

 as the roots are perfectly hardy and the plants will in- 

 crease in strength from year to year. The habit of this 

 plant is not so free as the two already mentioned, the 

 stems are more woody and stifter and the flowers are 

 not borne with such profusion, but still it is a very 

 worthy subject for the garden and vase, as a single 

 stem of flowers forms quite a show of blooms. It is 

 its color that appeals ; it has a blue that is lighter than 

 any other blue in the garden, with the exception of a 

 few Delphiniums. It should be planted not for massed 

 effect, but rather to increase the color scheme of the 

 border and therefore six or twelve plants, planted in 

 clumps every little distance in the border has a very 

 pleasing effect. 



Salvia patens. This plant requires a little more heat 

 in the seedling stage ancl when possible should be worked 

 into pots before planting out, so as to form strong indi- 

 vidual plants, as the habit of this plant is to send shoots 

 or stems from the crown, and does not branch like 6". 

 uliginosa and S. farinacea, so therefore the stronger the 

 crowns the more flowers will be produced. The plant pro- 

 duces herbaceous roots and where possible it should be 

 taken up in the Fall, potted and kept in a cool greenhouse 

 all \\'inter; in this way other strong plants are formed 

 and the true character comes out the following season. 



It should be used more as a bedding plant than as a 

 cut flower plant as the flowers do not stay long when 

 cut, but when left on the plant the flower stems continue 

 to grow in length and as soon as one flower falls another 

 is formed, thus keeping up a continuous mass of blooms 

 the major part of the summer months. To be effective 

 it must be massed and if used with Hiinncniannia 

 fiunariarfolia it makes a good combination. 



The flowers are of a dark blue and have a very large 

 lip, also blue in the throat and are borne sparingly on 

 a long stem. 



The Salvias mentioned above are types that can be 

 raised in any garden where there is a hot bed and cold 

 frames : they are simple in culture but rich in effect 

 and utility, and are worthy of a place in the garden of al) 

 plant-lovers. 



