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^^ARDEISERS' CHRONICLE 



much value where a hold, suhtropical effect is desired. 

 The use of shrubs at Aldenham in the make up of 

 what might be described as iirobdingnagian carpet beds 

 is perhaps unique. One example that created a rather 

 favorable impression was composed of a center of in- 

 numerable plants of the purple leaved Primus Pissardii 

 bordered with a silvery margin of Cornns alba, var. 

 Spcct/iii. Repeated shearings at a height of about two 

 feet above ground level had promoted the formation of 

 a mass of foliage so dense as to be comparable only with 

 that of a well maintained carpet bed. The golden leaved 

 privet was another shrub subjected to this treatment. 



The herbaceous borders exhibit a pleasing layout and 

 •at the time of our visit were gay with perennials in many 

 varieties. These borders bisect one of the vegetable gar- 

 dens (of several acres in extent) in two directions, form- 

 ing a cruciform arrangement. The lengthy vistas that 

 these borders present is partly broken and the eye ar- 

 rested by an ornamental rain gage set in a small pool at 

 the intersection of the walks. A pleasing foil to the 

 bright colors of the perennials is provided by a back- 

 ground of dwarf apple trees in splendid condition, and 

 there is an informal edging of rocks disposed in alternate 

 bays and promontories amongst which alpines and dwarf 

 rock plants revel. The rock garden at Aldenham is small 

 and not at all commensurate with the size of the place, 

 but for all that a large colletcion of alpines is maintained 

 either in pots or pans or, as just described, as an edging 

 to the perennial borders. 



In another part of the garden a wide border of herbs 

 opposite a planting of material with grey foliage pro- 

 vided a rather unusual display. In the latter planting 

 free use was made of such subjects as lavender and Ar- 

 temisia. Their quiet tones and subdued effect were en- 

 hanced by a gorgeous and brilliant background of holly- 

 hocks. These were Vert's "Double Strain" and com- 

 prised the finest varieties and best grown specimens we 

 have ever seen of this favorite border plant. 



The hardy fern border may be considered as one of 

 the features here. It is located on the north side of a 

 wall and contains about a hundred and thirty varieties. 

 The inspection of this border and the collection main- 

 tained at Enfield by Perry's Hardy Plant Farm served to 

 remind us that hardy ferns received but scant attention 

 at home and that their possibilities for garden service are 

 far from being realized. 



Another imjiortant feature at Aldenham is the border 

 of hardy Asters, or Michaelmas Daisies, as the English 

 prefer to call them. This occupies an area that we esti- 

 mated to be about three hundred feet long and thirty 

 wide. Individual plants are spaced so as to stand three 

 or four feet apart, and only three or four shoots are al- 

 lowed to grow from each plant. ()f course, they were 

 not in bloom at the time of our visit, but we saw a col- 

 ored lantern slide which gave an idea of the wonderful 

 display made by these Asters, which, by the way, were 

 ■developed mainly from our native species. 



The soil of this border was prepared by trenching it 

 to a depth of three feet. This fact is sufficient to account 

 for the differences [o be noted in the height of certain 

 varieties as recorded in American catalogs and in the 

 Aldenham list. ]\Iany new varieties have f>een raised and 

 introduced by IMr. Beckett in recent years. One set of 

 nbout twenty varieties belonging in the Xofi-Bclgii sec- 

 tion is reputed to be very fine. These have received 

 names that commemorate places and persons brought 

 into prominent notice by the Great War, such as "Mons,'' 

 "Ypres," "Namur," "Nurse Cavell," "Captain Fryatt," 



and "Cardinal Mercier." For the benefit of those who 

 may require further information concerning some of 

 these new Asters it may l>e mentioned that the Rev. 

 Jose])h Jacob described quite a number of them and re- 

 ported on their merits in The Garden (England) of De- 

 cember 11, 1020. 



Apart from the fruit under glass the only indoor sub- 

 jects that call for extended notice are the fine strain of 

 Streptocarpus for which these gardens have long been 

 famous, and a large collection of Pelargoniwn species, of 

 which the scented leaved varieties form a large part. 

 These were in former times universally popular, but 

 nowadays they have fallen into undeserved neglect. The 

 value that Mr. Beckett places upon one variety, Pelar- 

 gonitim crispum- varicgatmn, as a garden and pot plant 

 is shown by the large number that he grows both in 

 standard and bush form. It is of erect growth with stiff' 

 stems plentifully supplied with crinkled leaves having a 

 well defined silvery margin and is valuable as a pot plant 

 and also for bedding. Xot the least of its attractions is 

 its delightful citron-like odor. This variety was awarded 

 a First Class Certificate by the Royal Horticultural So- 

 ciety in 1919. Its history is interesting as showing the 

 reaction of a committee in charge of awards to the merits 

 of a given plant when shown at diff'erent times. ]\Ir. R. 

 H, Legg, of Melksham House Gardens, writing in the 

 Gardener's Chronicle (England), August 30, 1919, says 

 "the sport originated in these gardens in 1912, •, . . 

 In 1915 I showed six good plants at Chelsea, but ap- 

 parently it was not then recognized as of any value, as 

 no award was received for it.'' .\ large group shown by 

 Mr. Beckett four years after received an F. C, C. as 

 above reported. 



The excellence of the vegetable gardens is sufficiently 

 indicated when we record that Mr. Beckett has been 

 awarded somewhere around twenty gold, medals for dis- 

 plays of vegetables at the various big shows. Here, as 

 elsewhere on the grounds, nothing is neglected that 

 would serve to bring about a super-production — ground 

 trenched three feet deep, ample supplies of fertilizer and 

 plenty of room for the development of perfect specimens. 



Whilst on the subject of vegetables we should mention 

 that when passing an onion patch of the variety "Ailsa 

 Craig" our guide was moved to tell us a story of a Cali- 

 fornian visitor, which may be worth retelling as illustrat- 

 ing the ability of the American in holding his own. This 

 particular visitor was pridefully asked, when looking at 

 ;i bed containing bulbs weighing two or three pounds, 

 "Do you grow onions like that in your country?" and 

 received the astounding reply, "Well — yes, our small 

 ones run about that size — that's the kind we use for pick- 

 ling.'' We surmise that the endeavor to visibly impress 

 the Californian was then and there given up as a bad job. 



It was impossible to avoid making comparisons of the 

 methods used and results obtained in this garden, and in 

 the typical American garden. For example — at Alden- 

 ham rooted cuttings of shrubs are potted separately and- 

 the pots stood (not plunged) on ashes in cold frames 

 with plentv of space between each pot. Xothing very 

 remarkable in that, but when we see frame after frame 

 filled with shrubs in four and five-inch pots and are told 

 that they are all watered from a watering pot it makes 

 us marvel. It must be admitted that these hand-raised 

 and spoon-fed plants have the edge on those reared by 

 our slap dash methods, but whether the improvement in 

 the product is sufficient to warrant the extra labor is an- 

 other matter. 



{Continued on page 727) 



