IRISH GARDENING 



leaves, garden refuse and road scrapings may 

 all be incorporated as the work of trenching 

 l)roceeds. and each layer should l)e well trodden 

 tioAvn to prevent, as much as ])ossible, subsequent 

 sinking. When the work of trenching is com- 

 pleted, the surface should be well firmed by 

 tramping, and raked level. 



The work of planting and ])lanning a her- 

 baceous border is one of the most fascinating 

 a gardener is called upon to do, and requires a 

 thorough knowledge of herbaceous plants and a 

 great deal of forethought if a good display is 

 to be maintained over the longest possible 

 period. If a good selection of kinds is used the 

 border should be gay from March to October. 

 To achieve this it is clear that the earliest 

 disj)lay must come from bulbs and other spring 

 Howcring plants, and it is etiually obvious that 

 these nnist be replaced later in the season with an- 

 nuals, of which there are so many beautiful kinds. 



NoAV, annuals are just as much herbaceous 

 plants as are perennials, and so are bulbs, so 

 that their use is quite i:)ermissible and even 

 essential if the best results are desired. All 

 the annuals ret|uired for the border, illustrated 

 in this issue, are raised in nothing more than a 

 cold frame, some being sown in autumn and 

 others in Fel)ruary and March. It is found 

 desirable to raise even hardy annuals in boxes, 

 as there is much less risk in planting out sturdy 

 young plants than in sowing in the open. Less 

 seed is required, and when the bulbs are up it is 

 much easier to judge just where to put groups 

 of annuals, so as to fill out the space left by the 

 bulbs when they lie down. 



The earliest di.s])lay of bulbs is got from 

 Snowdrops, {h\arf Scillas, Winter Aconite and 

 Crocuses. These are followed by Daffodils in 

 many varieties, and they in turn give place tM 

 (Jottage and Darwin Tulips, which, flowering in 

 May in gorgeous profusion, usher in the main 

 summer display. In the case of the border 

 illiistrated, which is a portion of one of the long 

 herbaceous borders at Glasnevin, the front por- 

 tion has, in addition to bulbs, very many groups 

 of other spring flowering plants, such as double 

 Arabis, Yellow Alyssum, Polyanthuses, Auri- 

 culas, Pansies, Violas, Forget-me-Nots, and 

 Aubrietias of several sorts. The.se make a fine 

 .set ting for the bulbs, and being evergreen, give the 

 border a furnished appearance even in winter. 



Interspersed with the spring flowering plants 

 just mentioned are grou])s of Heucheras, Pinks, 

 Carnations and otlier summer flowers which 

 come into bloom as the others go out, and keej) 

 the front of the border gay while the annual.s, 

 hardy and half-hard>- which replace thcAral)is, 

 &c., are growing on for a late summer and 

 autumn disjilay 



The mo.st of the bulb.s in the borders at 



Glasnevin remain in the ground from year to 

 year, but any clumps showing signs of weaken- 

 ing are lifted and replaced in the summer 

 with annuals, the space being planted in 

 autumn again with stronger bulbs. In this 

 way, without an annual lifting of all the bulbs, 

 a gjod dis]ilav is assured every spring. 



Needless to say, the bulk of the display, 

 taking the season through, is contributed by 

 perennials, of which a large and comprehensive 

 collection is grown. Although in the illustra- 

 tion there apj)ears to be a background of trees, 

 there are none in the immediate vicinity of the 

 border. Tall strong-growing perennials, such 

 as Helianthuses, Rudbeckias, Delphiniums, 

 Michaelmas Daisies, interspersed with groups 

 of (Sweet Peas, Hollyhocks, tall Dahlias, &c., 

 form a background for plants of lesser stature. 

 Not all the tall plants are kept to the back — 

 some are allowed to extend to the middle of the 

 border, while j^lants of from two to three feet 

 reach quite to the front, and thus we get that 

 i>illowy appearance which is so much more 

 natural than the regular slope favoured by 

 jjlanters of earlier years. The middle of the 

 border is furnished mainly with plants of 

 medium height, such as Irises, Paeonias, Lupins, 

 Campanulas of several kinds, Pyrethrums, 

 Chrysanthemum maximum in several varieties, 

 but nothing ai^proaching straight lines of plants 

 uniform in height is anywhere attempted. 

 Likewise, no jDarticular colour scheme is kept 

 in view, though, as far as possible, colours which 

 do not contrast or blend pleasingly are kept 

 apart. This is fairly easy since spring, summer 

 and autumn flowers are judiciously arranged 

 to come in in their respective seasons, and so 

 distributed as to give the maximum amount of 

 colour from spring to autumn. 



In planting, medium-sized groujos are favoured 

 rather than the two extremes of huge masses 

 or single plants, l)ut this, of course, must be 

 regulated by the size of the border and the 

 time when the chief display is required. It is 

 i)est to so arrange the groups of early flowering 

 perennials that later flowering kinds may be 

 staked out to fill their place. This may be done 

 by planting in narrow drifts — in fact it is wise 

 to vary the shape of the groups throughout the 

 border. It is also advisable to bear in mind 

 the possibilities of coloured foliage plants, such 

 as those with grey leaves. Among these we have 

 Veronica incaiia and V. Candida, Nepeta Mus- 

 sini, Stachys lanata, Achillea clypeolata and A. 

 jcgyptiaca, and many others, valual)le not only 

 for the colour effect of their fohage, but harmon- 

 ising beautifully with pink or red Pentstemons, 

 Antirrhinums, &c. Among golden-leaved plants 

 Veronica Trehane is one of the prettiest. 



It is a good plan where no grass edging is 



