IRISH GARDENING 



85 



Seedling Daffodils in Co* Antrim* 



By Herbert Stevens. 



On a tyiJical April morning, amidst alternating 

 beams of sunlight and showers, we motored from 

 Portadown to Co. Antrini. to about four miles 

 beyond Ballymena, almost to the slopes of 

 Sleniish, the mountain where St. Patrick spent 

 the early years of his life. Here we met Mr. Guy 

 Wilson, of Knowhead, Broughshane, a young 

 man with a hobby for gardening, especially the 

 raising of Daffodils from seed. Whilst being 

 connected with a large business firm, Mr. Wilson 

 has found time to work amongst his favourite 

 flower, and wonderful success has attended his 

 efforts. It is some years since he raised his first 

 seedlings, and since then he has dis])osed of some 

 novelties, which have reached almt)st £20 a bulb. 

 Mr. Wilson is an enthvisiast, and has already met 

 a large circle of friends amongst Daffodil growers 

 on this side, and especially in England, where many 

 of his novelties have achieved great distinction. 



We were particularly struck with the luxviriant 

 growth of all the Daffodils he cultivates, convinc- 

 ing lis that there is a great future for the industry 

 in this country, which has already become 

 famous in many deiiartments of horticulture. 



On entering the avenue our attention was 

 arrested by the large breaks of bloom on a far- 

 reaching lawn. Here we found in well arranged 

 clumps such varieties as Madame de Graaff, 

 which lends itself to naturalising. Other 

 varieties growing in this manner in profusion 

 were several Poets, Chaucer, Horace, a pure white 

 with overlap])ing petals and intense red crown. 

 Citron, Herrick; all of these presented a striking 

 a])pearance amongst the grass, and here and 

 there, by way of contrast, were fine clumps of 

 Blue Grape Hyacinths (Muscari). 



In the garden, which faces the mid-day sun, 

 planted in rich loam, and wonderfully free from 

 weeds, were cpiantities of varieties that are yet 

 uncommon, and to see them here one would 

 imagine otherwise. Here were King Alfred, 

 with large trumpet of self-colour, intense pure 

 golden yellow, most perfect in shape, and with 

 enormous stalks measviring two feet in length, 

 and which the hybridiser informs us has i)roved 

 one of the most useful ijarents for many novelties. 

 Here also were Weardale Perfection, one of the 

 most refined of the trumpets ; I^ady Margaret 

 Boscawen, a giant bicolor : Incomparabilis, a fine 

 decorative variety : (Uoi'ia Mimdi, which Mr. 

 Wilson still thinks one of the best orange-crowned 

 Tncomparables ; Buttercup, a .Tonquil hybrid of a 

 lovely golden colour. 



Amongst doubles some lovely blooms were to 

 be seen of Golden Rose and Primrose Phcpnix, 

 also Sul]ihur Crown varieties well grown, with 

 long foot stalks, and much in-ized as cut flowers. 



Our enthusiasm ros<» to the highest pitch wlicn 

 we were shown Mr. Wilson's seedlings, Ix-aulifully 

 staged in the drawingroom on a terraced stand, 

 which would have done credit to any exhibitor. 

 Here were seedlings that had taken Ave to six 

 years to develop, surely a lesson in patience 

 when we remember that the Pose hybridiser can 

 sow his seed and have blooms in the same year. 



Amongst the many crosses, we noted some 

 extraordinary blooms, which for ])erfect form, 

 stamina and strength will command a high price 

 when ])ut into commerce. 



Some of the more striking were : — No. 2/30, a 



very beautiful large, pure white trum])et, perianth 

 and ti'utupet being equally white, and the perianth 

 standing flat and at right angles to the trumpet ; 

 this is a seedling from Madame de Graaft" crossed 

 with another white trumpet. Xo. 2/44, a fine 

 Poet, raised between Horace and Virgil, having 

 fine substantial overlapping snow-white i)erianth 

 and lovely red eye with a cool green centre. 

 No. 3/13, Madame de GraafT crossed with King 

 Alfred, a beautiful decorative flower, with white 

 ])erianth and graceful expanded pale, cool])rimro.se 

 trumpet, and having a very tall stem : this cross 

 has given several nice flowers, including Xo. 3/24, 

 a beautiful pure deep lemon self trunqjet. No. 

 3/15, a flower of the Giant Leedsii type, abso- 

 lutely dead ])vire white, and we understand it 

 opens pure white on the plant. While Xo. 3/19 

 was a wonderful white trumpet of quite 

 exceptional ])urity ; beside it Madame de Graaff 

 looked quite yellow. 



After lunch we were conducted to another 

 garden in which were whole beds of seedlings. 

 Amongst those that drew forth our admiration 

 were some lovely .Johnstoni seedlings, which were 

 not only lovely in their delicate tints, but models 

 of form. These, we understand, were obtained by 

 crossing Triandrus albus and Madame de Ciraaft". 



We stood in raptures over a bed of seedlings 

 raised from crosses made with King Alfred and 

 Madame de Graaff, which had ])roduced many 

 wonderful trumpets of enormous size, ami the 

 majority with foot stalks two feet in length. 

 One of the largest trumpets yet raised by any 

 grower is one possessed by Mr. Wilson, which is 

 a cross between Preston and King Alfred. This 

 gi-eat yellow trumpeter measured 5 J inches across 



In the Giant Leedsii section a cross made be- 

 tween Minnie Hume and Pearl of Kent was re- 

 sponsible for one perfect bloom, which was quite 

 untouched by the burning sun of the last few days, 

 its splendid broadly overlapping solid pure white 

 perianth remaining perfectly flat and smooth. 



We were anxious to have Mr. Wilson's opinion 

 on what he considered would be the best varieties 

 for commercial purposes amongst the ])resent 

 novelties, and the following are some of Hie varie- 

 ties he selected: — White Lady, tall ivory Leedsii : 

 Horace, extra fine, strong quickly increasing 

 Poet; Albatross, a large white Barrii witli orange- 

 tipped crown; King Alfred, when iilentirul, will, 

 he says, be the finest of all nuirket flowers, witii its 

 great stems, glorious colour and form, with extra- 

 ordinary lasting powers; Weardale I'erfection 

 produces grand plants when gi-own slowly, and 

 gives noble blooms with great stems ; Homespun 

 is a very refined soft yellow Imcomparablis. 



Amongst the very best red cups are White 

 Lucifer and Firebrand. Thert' are many others, 

 but these, it is predicted, will occupy the foremost 

 ])lace with mark.-t growers in thr future. 



As alreadv stated, the gi-owth of all we saw 

 was extraordinarv. and we were anxious to liiul 

 out the secret of it. Mr. Wilson tells us that it is 

 necessary to manin-e heavily with ordinary farm- 

 yard manure, and to prei)are the ground with a 

 i)revious crop of early potatoes, ami when plant- 

 ing, add about 2 ozs. of bone-meal to the s(piare 

 yard. The gi-ound selected nuist l)e well drained, 

 inoist and cool, (ireat imi)ortaiice was attached 

 to the constani surface hoeing; l)y this the i)lants 

 respond visibly. The chief points to renxember are 

 early planting, never later than the end of 

 September; never cut the foliage till it dies 

 naturallv. never give fresh manure. 



