178 



GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



to lack substance piid to be olif-color. Tbe varieties named 

 in this paper are at their liest from November until April, 

 and on several occasions all of them have been exhibited 

 in full flower and in fresh condition in the month of April. 

 This is. easily accomplished by keeping those varieties 

 Avhich would naturally flower during Deceinber, January, 

 and February in structures that can be kept at a temjiera- 

 ture between 32 and 40 degrees. I might mention here 

 that my entire collection has been e.\]X)sed, for a i)eriod 

 of fifteen hours, to a temperature ranging between 30 and 

 25 degrees, and so far as I have been able to judge the 

 health of the plants was not affected. 



Acacias are at the height of their beauty during the 

 cold and gloomy season when flowering plants are scarce 

 but much in demand. They are quite easy to grow and. 

 as compared with most other plants, not expensive because 

 they thrive in a low temperature. When grown in beds 

 in large glass structures, little labor is required to keep 

 them in a healthy condition. There are many large glass 

 houses in this country admirably suited for the growing 

 and display of .\cacias. Could anything be more wonder- 

 ful and interesting than to see one of these completely filled 

 with Acacia plants in full bloom? 



When out of flower the great variety of foliage, l:oth in 

 form and color, makes the Acacias one of the most useful 

 and beautiful of all plants. Some varieties have a blue 

 foliage e(|ualled only in the finest blue spruces. Every 

 shade of green, from the darkest to the palest, is included 

 in the Acacia family. As compared with palms and ferns. 

 which as a general rule are to be found growing in such 

 houses. Acacias would prove easier to manage and more 

 economical and would attract, interest and give pleasure 

 to a greater number of persons than the plants usually 

 found in most large conservatories. 



Briefly, I would call attention to what I consider tbe 

 three most valuable species of Acacias now in cultivation. 

 They are A. pubescens. A. Baileyana and .-K. dealbata. 

 These three species in mv judgment are the most beautiful 

 in cultivation and are the most useful and suitable either 

 for cut flowers or as plants for conservatory or house 

 decoration, .\cacia Baileyana is the earliest of the three 

 to flower and may l)e bad in bloom for Christmas. There 

 are several forms of this species dit'fering distinctly both 

 in form and in date of coming into blossom. This is also 

 true of A. dealbata, which flowers a little later. Acacia 

 pubescens is the last of the three to come into bloom, and 

 is considered by many j>ersons to be the most beautiful 

 of all .-\cacias. 



GOOD SWEET PEAS WITHOUT DISBUDDING 



jVyiCCH has been written in recent years in favor of the 

 ^^ Cordon system of growing Sweet Peas, but the con- 

 tinued shortage of suitable help for garden o])eration and 

 tbe recent nnfavoral le seasons, have had a discouraging 

 effect on many of our best growers. 



The fact that splendifl flowers can be grown without dis- 

 budding the vines has often been demonstrated, and while 

 the flowers grown on undisbudded ])lants lack the sub- 

 stance of stem and bloom that others grown on the Cordon 

 system possess, they also lack the coarseness of the better 

 grown stock. 



To cite an instance of this kind a (lisi)lay of Sweet 

 Peas grown naturally was exhibited before one of our 

 Florists' Clubs early last June, aufl was conceded to be 

 the finest showing of these flowers ever seen b\ the I'lcjrists 

 present at the meeting. 



To insure the best success, seeds of the finest varieties 

 should be sown during the Fall, or early in the N'ew Year, 

 tbe time depending much on the ai)plianccs the grower has 

 at his commanfl. Seeds sown during ( )ctnber ancl 



wintered over in a cold frame will give the finest results if 

 the plants are grown sturdily by means of careful ventila- 

 tion in favorable weather, and given room to develop 

 properly. 



Many growers still stick close to the method of sowing 

 and growing on in pots, but better gennination can be 

 secured from sowing in flats, and the ultimate results will 

 be as good from plants grown on in flats. 



^^'here pots are used, four or five inch pots should be 

 used to finish off the plants before ]itanting out in Spring; 

 if llats are used, the plants should be transplanted three 

 inches or more apart, and the flats should be four inches 

 deep. 



Plants well grown in pots or fiats are often furnished 

 with several good .stout Iiranches and it does not require a 

 great deal of intelligence as regards horticultural matters 

 to realize that plants of this stature rc(juire a good deal 

 of room for future development. 



They should be planted not less than a foot apart, and 

 with the best plants, eighteen inches is not too much room 

 to give the plants in the row, and if double rows are 

 planted, which is a good plan to adopt, the rows should 

 lie from fifteen to twenty-four inches apart. 



I'sually the one bone of contention is the matter of sup- 

 ports, good twiggy brush from birch, hazel, elm or dog- 

 wood is beyond question the most suitable as regards the 

 comfort of the plants, for if the rows are run north and 

 south, the brush gives a very beneficial shade to the plants 

 during the middle day, and if the brush is neatly arranged, 

 little objection can be made on the appearance of the ar- 

 rangement. It is a good plan to run two or three wires, 

 drawn verv tight, along each side of the brush to help keep 

 the sides in shape and the tops and sides should also be 

 trimmed neatly. 



Where suitable brush cannot be secured, or there is an 

 objection, on the part of persons in authority, to the use 

 of brush, other mediods must be adopted ; poultrv wire is 

 no doubt the neatest su]iport, but most gardeners wisely 

 avoid it. 



A method we recently adopted which gives pleasing re- 

 sults is to use long cane stakes as for Cordon work, placed 

 six inches apart in the rows, and secured to an overhead 

 wire or wood support, and sloping slightly inward the 

 plants are planted between the stakes, and instead of being 

 disbudded and tied singly to each stake, they are allowed 

 to branch out. and are kej)t uiiright by looping and inter- 

 lacing white string along the stakes. .As tbe jilants grow 

 stronger, good strong twine is run loosely along each side 

 and looped in to the stakes. With well grown stock the 

 ])lants soon fill up the space between the double row and 

 present a pleasing effect] while the length of stem and 

 gracefulness of bloom leave very little to be desired. 



Plants grown in this manner will stand considerable 

 feeding in favorable seasons, and arc greatly benefitted by 

 a mulch of partly decayed leaves or old mjiniu'e. 



Cive ;i good cultivating weekly during the earh' |)art of 

 the .Summer until the mulch is applied and this shmild n^t 

 be allowed to mat down and choke the soil. 



If the grower wishes, a partial disbudding niav he made 

 by early thinning the vines, and with some varieties this 

 will give excellent results. — Ch.aui.ks Ei,i,iott in Amcr- 

 iaiii Sweet Pea HiiHelin. 



A CORRECTION 



■"pi i i\< )C< Ilia t\ pographical error whicii was overlooked 

 at the time, the nuiuher of Darwin tulips used in con- 

 structing the John Scheepers, Inc., bulb garden at the last 

 Si)rii-.g I'lower .^how was given as twenty-six hundred in- 

 slc.-id tif I went\-six thousand, on page l.^Cinf the lune issue. 



