228 



GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



THE ROSE OF SHARON 



T^HIS is the season of the year when we appreciate the 

 merits of the Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus) with 

 their Hollyhock-like blooms of many colors. There may 

 be more choice Summer flowering shrubs, but if we were 

 asked for the one that required the least attention, that is 

 not exacting as to soil requirements and will even tolerate 

 adverse city atmospheric conditions, our selection would 

 be the Rose of Sharon. Yes, and it will grow in the 

 shade, though it should not be expected to flower as freely 

 in this position. From July until frost its flowers brighten 

 the garden and landscape. 



One may obtain a wide range of color in pinks, blue and 

 pure white, and while we favor the single sorts, the double 

 varieties are available for those who believe they last 

 longer and they do not have the seed pods which some 

 would consider as not ornamental. Totus albus is the 

 fKjpular single white : coelestis. a Ijeautiful single blue, and 

 single pink does not appear to have been given any other 

 name. Bicolor is a double cream with crimson center ; 

 Boule de Feu is a red ; Lady Stanley, a double blush pink ; 

 Compte de Flanders, a dark red (double), and carnea 

 plena, a double rose. For those who like a variegated 

 foliage there is the old Hibiscus syriacus variegata. whose 

 buds never open and the improved variety, Meehanii. hav- 

 ing a single violet flower. The latter, as with other de- 

 sirable sorts, is grafted on the roots of seedlings, though 

 propagation may lie done by cuttings also from seed if the 

 color of bloom is not essential. 



Many use the Rose of Sharon for hedge purposes, either 

 alone or in conjunction with a .screen of Lombardy Pop- 

 lars. We prefer mixed colors for a hedge, with the lighter 

 ones predominating. Massed in the background of shrub- 

 bery borders and as single tree form specimens it may l:)e 

 used. Although pruning is not necessarv', .stronger flow- 

 ering wood is obtained by cutting back, in Winter or 

 Spring, the new woo<l to one or two eyes, as with the 

 Hydrangea j-aniculata and grandiflora. and thinning out 

 sujjerfluoui branches as needed. This treatment also 

 insures a shapely plant and keeps it in bounds. — Florists' 

 Exchanze. 



WHAT IS A GARDENER? 



VY/lfAT is a gardener? He has been pictured in so 

 many ways — gowl, bad and ridiculous — that to 

 most pe^'ple he is a conundrum. I have seen him pic- 

 tured in many ways that were anything but flattering 

 and which did not convey a sensible idea of what he was 

 like or what he was supposed to do ; but artists, I suppose, 

 have license to apply a ludicrous idea to anyone. How- 

 ever, the garrlener is a grK>d natured fellow usually and 

 d'jes not worry over a caricature — wise or unwise. 



"There are two varieties of the genus 'gardener,' one 

 goofl for something and the other gfM^id for nothing. The 

 first kind is scarce but. alas, the secr)nd variety alxiunds — 

 the couiitry is full of it-> kind, and one of the objects of 

 this associatifrti should Iw; to find some means of eraflicat- 

 ing him root and branch, so as to allow the good variety 

 to flourish and bloom to full capacity. The lattei comes 

 of vigorous stock, is healthy, lives in any climate, and 

 there is no telling to what pro[)f>rtions he might attain, or 

 to what heights his genius might rise. I believe there is 

 a great deal of talent, energy and ambition in his make-up, 

 W'c have with us tnday many of the old tyi>c of 

 gardener — he who served an apprenticeship, who came 

 through the 'College of Hard Knocks.' He has nf>t much 

 theory, does not go far out of the beaten track, has th.- 

 •ange of plant growing in his grasj). eschews most litera- 

 ture and allied sciences, but is willing to 'swap experi- 

 ences' with a fellow gardener; he is modest to a fault, and 



the best man in the world as a citizen generally : he'll take 

 all that you like to give him and will give you anything 

 vou ask for, if he has it. 



"The new tvpe of a gardener is dit^erent and it is about 

 him that I wish to sjieak today. He is not so much an 

 all-round man. but specializes more; perhaps his pref- 

 erence is for one phase of plant growing, or even some 

 particular plant. I am a great believer in specialties, but 

 1 like to see a man be an all-round man, if possible, as 

 well. Hitherto the status of the gardener in Canada has 

 been anvthing but flattering and the consequence has been 

 humilitv, low wages and erroneous ideas as to his ability. 

 His value to the community cannot be questioned. To 

 the plant loving public his responsibility is great, in that 

 good examjiles of his skill are always in great demand 

 for the beautification of our home surroundings, whether 

 those of peer or peasant, whether public or private. His 

 field is also the introduction of new ideas and improve- 

 ments in the cultivation of flowers, fruits and vegetables. 



"A word to the gardener himself. It dej^ends to a very 

 great extent, on you yourselves, whether you rise above 

 your present status. As before mentioned, in the past 

 you have been kept down and have accepted the most 

 modest consideration. Your value depends on how much 

 you know and whether you are willing and ambitious to 

 learn more and progress : to put your ideas into prac- 

 tical shajje. Educated gardeners are today in great de- 

 mand, in fact, the market has never been glutted with 

 good men. If vou seek anything earnestly the chances 

 are invariably in your favor. It is not necessary to 

 proclaim your prowess as a skilled man from the hilltops 

 and brag about it. A man is usually judged on his merits 

 or results and treaterl accordingly ( at least this is my 

 own observation) and as a conseijuence it is the position 

 that seeks the man, not the man the position. — Extracts 

 from an address by \V . J. Potter, Toronto, before Caiui- 

 dian Gardeners' & Florists' Association. 



DAHLIAS FROM SEED 

 ( Continued from page 225 i 



doors in some sunny window about the first i>art of April. 

 The seed should be planted in boxes containing finely 

 sifted soil and covered about a quarter of an inch. The 

 soil must always be kejjt mcjist, and it is better if the box 

 is coverefl with a pane of glass or ])iece of jjaper until the 

 seeds break through the surface. The boxes should be 

 kept in a cool room, as rapid growth in a warm room is 

 detrimental to the plants. When the .seedlings are about 

 two inches high they should be transplanted into other 

 boxes, being spaced two inches apart, or. better still, they 

 should l)e potted in small jxjts. Care must be exercised 

 not to let the plants become pot-lxnmd at any time, and 

 they should be shifted into larger pots when the roots be- 

 come too crowded at the base of the ball of soil in the ix)t. 

 If a hot-bed or cold-frame is available good stocky plants 

 can be had for planting outdoors some time in May. .\fter 

 p'anting out, two systems of training may l>e practiced : 

 ( 1 ) All side shoots may be pinched off, only the central 

 shoot being allowed to grow. This method will produce 

 few but very fine flowers. (2) When quantity of bloom is 

 the object in the garden the plants may be ])inched to 

 al)out four main branches. Xo matter how they are 

 trained, however, dahlias should always l)e staked, as 

 s- mctimes a Summer storm lays them flat. 



I'ailure with flahlias one year should not discourage the 

 amateur from trying a second time. The behavior of the 

 pl.-ints varies from year to year and unless conditions are 

 ideal they will grow but give verv' few blooms. Except in 

 a lew favored localities in this country dahlia seasons arc 

 variable. — Missouri Botanical Garden HuUetin. 



