224 



GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



partly because of its flowering so freely. The Hower heads are 

 fully 3 inches across, the creamy white bracts being the chief 

 feature and surrounding a central boss of tiny flowers that are 

 rosy until they expand, when they are yellowish. It was shown 

 by J. Osborne, Drynham. Weybridge. England. — 'I'hc Ciardcncrs' 

 Chronicle of London. 



Haiiiciinclis vcrnalis Sari^cnti (Sargent's W'itchhazel), having 

 for its habitat Missouri, Arkansas and Lousiana, where it is 

 hardy, must certainly be the earliest shrub to flower in the year. 

 And it is claimed to be as hardy as the other witchhazels. Its 

 petals, of papyraceous nature, resist the January frost in France. 

 It flowers profusely, even in the case of small plants, and so is 

 well adapted to growing in pots. Its perfume is sweet and 

 penetrating. The branches, cut in flower or in the bud, are ex- 

 cellent in association with the leaves of plants used in Winter 

 ornamenting of hou.ses. — Rr: lu- Horliiolc. 



Sieliold's Jasmine (/. Sicboldiunuiu) , from Japan, though not 

 specitically distinct from /. nudifJorum, is a much hner and in 

 every way superior plant. It is equally hardy and free-growing 

 and produces larger flowers, more regular in outline, of much 

 greater substance and more closely set on the plant. — Gardening 

 Illustrated. 



Tulip Inglescombe White is a great addition to the compara- 

 tively short list of white May-flowering tulips. It has a some- 

 what loose, cup-shaped, bloom with the tips of the petals re- 

 Hexed. — Gardening Illustrated. 



Trumpet Narcissus Flagstaff, a soft yellow, certainly has a 

 fulurc. It is exceedingly noble and refined, has splendid presence 

 and lirni te.xture. — Garden Illustrated. 



Narcissus John Evelyn, a bicolor incomparabilis, of white 

 perianth and yellow crown, has received an award of inerit 

 from the K. H. S. — The Gardeners' Chronicle of London. 



Erica Darteyensis is a hardy heath that originated in the 

 nurseries of James Smith and Son, Darley Dale, Derbyshire, 

 England. It forms a dense spreading mass to a height of 1 to 

 2 feet and from November to -April or May is covered with 

 rosy-red flowers so that it makes an e.xcellent informal edging 

 to shrubbery beds and Ijorders. Unlike other heaths it does 

 not need peat atid grows almost as well, if not quite as well, 

 in a sandy loam with which a fair amount of leaf mold has been 

 incorporated. Cuttings root readily in late Summer and early 

 Autumn. — The Gardener.s-' Chronicle. 



Moraca iridioides Johnsoni is the loveliest of all the Moraeas. 

 Its blossoms are not only double the size and far more beauti- 

 fully cobjred than those of the type, but they persist also about 

 4 days in semi-shade and only a little shorter time in full sun- 

 shine. The flowers, of creamy-white, blotched with yellow and 

 with the central standard of a rich shade of violet and feathered 

 at the base witii crimson-brown markings, are of singular beauty 

 and hues quite harmonious. — The Gardeners' Chronicle. 



Sa.vifraga In'iiigi. named to compliment Mr. Walter Irving, 

 the head of the hardy plant department at Kew, where it orig- 

 mated, appeals by dainty coloring and wondrous flower free- 

 dom, to all lovers of choice alpines. Only an inch tall it almost 

 hides its spiny tufts with Bowers large for its own diminutive 

 stature, of deiicate shell-pink, deeper apparently at the l)ase 

 where (he color from the ovary is reflected, and finishes almost 

 white. .After 2 years from the cutting the natural density of 

 growth precludes full development of the rosettes. In the rock 

 gully it should be given loam, grit and pulverized rock^ in equal 

 proportions; a window ledge or alpine house reveals its charms 

 best. — Oordening Ulnstroted. 



I'iola calcarata. well named the "Pansy of the .Alps,'' is a 

 lovely plant that forms tufts of leafy stems about 3 inches high 

 and which bear large violet-purple flowers, each with a long 

 spur. It is easily grown in the rock garden, in half shady 

 sites or even in full siuishine, providing that it has sufficient 

 moisture at the roots. It should be planted in very gritty soil 

 with thorough drainage. Cuttings inserted in Summer readily 

 strike root ; but it may be raised from seeds sown as soon as 

 they are ripe. There is a clear yellow- form also. — The Gar- 

 iener.<:' Chronicle of London. 



ll'aldsleinia trifolia. with remarkably pretty, leathery and shiny 

 green leaves and sprays of golden flowers over a considerable 

 time of the Summer, is probably the best garden plant of the 

 genus. It is not too rampant easily to be kept within bounds as 

 a carpet. .Above a retaining wall it is particularly delightful. — 

 The Gardeners' Chronicle of London. 



Sundry Ite.ms of Intere.st. 



The Classification of Tulilts. "It is probably little known out- 

 side of England and Holland that an Anglo-Dutch committee 

 has revised the classification of garden tulips in 1914-15 by study- 

 ing for two seasons the flowering of tulips in the garden of the 

 Royal Horticultural Society of London, where the English and 

 Dutch horticulturalists have planted the bulbs of more than 

 i.5(X) different named varieties and that they have verified all 

 by fixing the exact name for each variety. A very instructive 

 I eport of 164 pages, ornainented with numerous figures and con- 

 taming photographs of the bases of diff'erent flowers to serve 

 for their classification, was published in 1917 under the auspices 

 of the Society. 



In recommending the study and consulting of this report to 

 all who are interested in tulips I give myself the honor of 

 giving here the outline of the classification adopted bj- the com- 

 mittee. 



I. Early Varieties : A. Due van Thol, singles ; B. singles ; C. 

 doubles. 



II. Late Varieties: A. Cottage Tulips; B. Self-colored Mother 

 Tulips (Breeders): 1. Dutch (rose-violet-varied); 2. English 

 (rose-violet-varied); 3. Darwins ; C. Varieties rectified (with 

 striped flowers); 1. Dutch (rose-violet-varied); 2. English 

 (rose-violet-varied) ; 3. Rembrandt (rose-violet) ; 4. Cottage 

 Tulips rectified (rose-violet-varied;. D. Parrot Tulips; E. 

 doubles. 



III. Botanical species. — Ernest Krelage, in Revue Horticole. 



Some copies of the classification of tulips made by the com- 

 mittee of the R. H. S. in 1914-1915 and containing the lists of 

 the tulips of each group according to color can still be obtained 

 from R. Dykes, Secretary, Vincent Square, London, S. W., at 

 5s. each. — Reiue Horticole. 



As to "Daffodils that take the imnds of .March icith beauty," 

 it is to be borne in mind that Shakespeare wrote under the 

 old calendar when the year was ten days behind. His month of 

 March began on what is now March 1 1 and ended on what is 

 now .April 10. So a third of the month was really April. Then, 

 too, he probably had in mind, not our garden daffodils, but the 

 wild Lent Lily. This was much more abundant in the sixteenth 

 century, before modern civilization had ousted it from its haunts, 

 especially near towns. Even liy our modern reckoning it is com- 

 monlv in full bloom in March. — The Garden. 



Rhododendron Lodcri. in the opinion of many the finest flower- 

 ing shrub hardy in nothern climes, is again given prominence 

 by the death of its originator, Sir Edmund Loder, Bart., of 

 Leonardslee, Sussex. England. This fine plant, which produces 

 massive and well-built trusses of sometimes over 30 inches in 

 circumference, the individual flowers of which are occasionally 

 6K» inches across, is only one of this plant-lover's distinctions. 

 In his garden are over 350 species and varieties of conifers, a 

 collection surpassing anything else of its kind in the country. — 

 Tlie Garden. 



The English Rock Garden. Reginald Farrer's latest book, is 

 a notable work indeed, in spite of some inaccuracies already de- 

 tected by the reviewer and in spite of its not having a greatly 

 needed index. On over 1,()00 pages it describes plants, the num- 

 ber of which runs up into 4 figures. "One can only be amazed 

 at the industry and ability of the author which enabled him to 

 complete so stupendous a task within the limits of an ordinary 

 lifetime." — Irish Gardening. 



I'runus cerasifera Tissardo or P. c. atropurpurea (Purple- 

 leaved Plum), of foliage that in its young-growth stage is tender 

 ruby-red, changing later to claret, finally to dull, heavy purple, 

 can be trained and really is best pruned freely, for this does not 

 lessen the crop of flowers, but rather increases it. — The Gar- 

 deners' Chronicle of London. 



.Magnolia stellata (White Starry Magnolia), planted against 

 ihc wall of a house facing west by south, flowers in profusion. 

 To confine it, it may be cut back hard as soon as it is done 

 flowering. — The Garden. 



Like most magnolias it likes a rather heavy soil, but as it is 

 so hardy and easy to grow it flourishes even in a light and peaty 

 soil. — Garden Illustrated. 



I'ihurnuni Carlesi. as regards fragrance has not a rival. It 

 scents the air for yards, when even a quite small plant. But 

 Osnianthus Delarayi. hardy in a cliinate like that of southern 

 England, is not fragrant when grown in the open. Under glass 

 it perfumes (he air much more. — The Garden. 



.S>ir(r(i arguta is one of the best dozen .April-flowering shrubs. 



