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GARDEl^ERS' CHRONICLE 



Azalea pontica. and Acer [•aUnatum. not over three year 

 seedlings without having soil washed from the roots, 

 comes as the first dent in their Chinese wall of plant 

 exclusion. The bulb hearing would seem to indicate that 

 the continued exclusion of such bulbs as Chionodoxa, 

 Galanthas, Iris, Scilla, and FritiUaria- was absolutely in- 

 defensible and we maj' reasonably expect the admission 

 of these and others next season. Growers here admit 

 their inability to successfully reproduce them, so why 

 debar them? Much is made of the fact that quantities of 

 cattleyas and one or two other orchid hybrids are being 

 raised from seed here now and that some of them will 

 flower a few years hence. Is anyone propagating Phahc- 

 nopsis, Vanda ccrridea, various oncidiums like i-ariosirm 

 Rogersii and sple)ixiiduin, such dendrobes as Phahcuopsis 

 Schra-nilca. such dendrobes as PliaJccnopsis Sehnv- 

 dcriana, Wardiaiiimi. fonnosnm, gigantemn, and Dearer, 

 and odontoglossums ? There seems absolutely no reason 

 in debarring such varieties which to many people are 

 much more beautiful than the gaudy onuiipresent cattleyas, 

 * * * * 



Mardy chrysanthemums have been particularly good 

 this Fall in spite of quit severe frosts in October. Some 

 growers seem to have trouble in wintering them success- 

 fully. They need land which is very well drained, and 

 in New England are always seen at their best planted in 

 ■borders with a little slope, and either against the house 

 or very near to it. As plants in the average formal 

 garden, thev are useful but have their limitations. I have 

 not found that they carry over well from year to year. 

 Young plants pinched until the end of June give the test 

 service. It is a simple matter to carry over a few stock 

 plants in a cold greenhouse, cold frame, or even a cellar 

 w-ith an earthen floor where the plants can get some light. 

 When cosmos, dahlias, gladioli, asters, and other garden 

 flowers have passed, these chrysanthemums prove espe- 

 ciallv welcome, and as I write ( November 10) some 

 clumps outside my home are covered with bloom. The 

 small pomfwns stand the greatest amount of cold, the 

 singles and anemones blacken more or less as the tem- 

 perature falls to twenty-four degrees or lower. The fol- 

 lowing with me have done remarkably well and should 

 succeed with the average grower ; "Doris," the hardiest 

 of all, "Ora," "Normandie,'" "Seven Oaks," "Lilian Doty," 

 and "Roupel lieauty." There are many other beauties, 

 superior no doubt to the above named in some respect, but 

 not in hardiness. 



:■: * * * 



While there is no decline in the popularity of the 

 chrysanthemum as a flower, there is an undeniable falling 

 off in the number of exhibitions devoted to this popular 

 Fall flower, and the attendance is not all that it used to 

 ■be. On the other hand. Spring flower shows have be- 

 come increasingly popular and profitable. The days of 

 big specimen jilants and blooms of chrysanthenuuus seem 

 to be nuinl)ered at least temporarily. The general public 

 grew tired of them and it is refreshing to note the ra]>idly 

 increasing interest in and poindarity of pompoms, singles. 

 and anemones grown naturally. The greater demand 

 for varieties ada|)tal)le to garden culture is also encourag- 

 ing. There will continue to be a place for big blooms. 

 and a more limited one for specimen trained plants, but 

 with their gradual elimination wliat can be dr)ne to make 

 Fall exhibitions more varied and attractive? 



The great charm of a Spring exhibition lays in the 

 infinite variety of subjects to be seen and the fact that the 

 general public is more or less hungry for them after a 

 long \V-n'.'.T. On the other hand, when chrysanthenumis 



come in reason, many of our trees and shrubs are mag- 

 nificent with foliage or fruit, lawns remain green and 

 some flowers still linger outdoors. W'hile chrysanthemums 

 will continue to be the great feature at aiUunmal shows, 

 efforts should be made to bring out their decorative effects 

 in vases, baskets, hampers, and for table and mantel 

 efl:'ects. The free use of oak and other foliage helps 

 materially in producing pleasing eft'ects. Apart from 

 chrysanthemums, however, there is mtich material avail- 

 able. The English race of Winter flowering begonias 

 are magnificent. IMants of "Emily Clibran," "Orange 

 King." and other varieties, four feet in diameter, out-do 

 any specimen chrysanthemums in colorful eftect and 

 beauty. The smaller flowered begonia, like melior, "Flag 

 of Cincinnati," and "Gloire de Lorraine" are not at their 

 best thus early, neither are cyclamens, but quite presentable 

 batches could very well be staged. Then there are nerines, 

 and what can surpass a group of them in beauty? Or- 

 chids ill a good variety are in season and the addition of 

 groups and single dishes of seasonable fruits and vege- 

 table helps to round out a well varied and attractive show. 

 It is not too late also to include displays of Autumn 

 sprays and fruits such as cotoneasters, Cratccgus. vibur- 

 nums, Bcrberis, roses, and many others still in full beauty, 

 and, of course, cut roses, carnations, and other flowers 

 while not of the same quality as in early Spring, will all 

 help to add interest to such a show. 



That interest in the culture of hardy roses is surely 

 growing is evidenced by the fact that new rose gardens 

 are continually being developed. Plans are under way 

 to create the greatest rose garden of its kind in America 

 in the Arnold Arboretum to cover about three acres of 

 land and cost some $300,000, which would include all 

 known hardy species as well as the so-called garden roses. 

 ^Meantime, a large garden with a rose garden as the 

 central feature is planned for Franklin Park, Boston. 

 Work on this will commence next year and part of the 

 planting will be done. It is estimated that 2.S,000 roses 

 will be planted in this garden during 1923 and 1924. 

 Income from the Francis Parkman fund will provide the 

 necessary $150,000 for the work. The making of such 

 gardens should help enornuiusly to develo]) the hardy 

 rose industry. 



* * * * 



I have always failed to see what greater risk is incurred 

 in importing hardy roses than the stock they are to be 

 grafted or budded on. The latter, however, is admitted 

 and the former debarred. The wholesale dumping of 

 roses grown in the muck lands of Holland and sold for a 

 mere pittance years ago did much to discourage ])cople 

 from planting garden roses. The Dutch stock proved to 

 be notoriously unreliable and short lived, in marked con- 

 trast to the P.ritish and Irish roses. Great efforts are 

 being made to produce good, hardy roses here to take 

 the place of the "dangerous" foreign articles and with 

 considerable success. \\"hether the MnUUlora. Japoiiiea 

 and other stock used will prove as satisfactory in the long 

 run as the iiiaiietli and seedling brier, time alone will tell. 

 .Some growers find that the ln'aviost ])!ants received are 

 very unsatisfactory and make but feeble growth under the 

 best treatment, the cause for which I have been unable 

 to fathom. There is much need for more careful l;ibelh'ng 

 of field grown .■\merican roses, in looking over a Large 

 collection this .Summer, the purchaser, a keen rose en- 

 thusiast, said that not more than half the plants purchased 

 bad come true to name. This is most regrettable as well 

 as discouraging. It is a ])oor advertisement for the party 

 sending nut such roses, is a |)ractice still too commonly 

 indulged in. and cannrit be too stronglv condemned. 



