JUNE 



IRISH GARDENING. 



95 



method would be to apply the following materials with 

 a sprayer or fine-nosed syringe :— i lb. soft soap, i^ 

 pints water, boil for half an hour ; then stir in imme- 

 diately y^ pint paraffin, and make up to 8 gallons by 

 adding water. Evening is the best time to apply it, 

 and it would be well to do so at intervals, for all the 

 visitors may not make their appearance at the same 

 time. 



Late Peas. — It will be nearing the end of the season 

 for sowing these, as after this month has passed a week 

 or two it would be surer to depend on the earlier kinds. 

 No garden should, however, be without its row of 

 Gladstone pea. It is a great grower and cropper, 

 besides being quite the best for the show bench late in 

 the season. Above all other kinds it seems to benefit 

 most by being sown very thinly. Three rows o{ seeds 

 placed three inches apart each way will give surprising 

 results. The cautious people may of course sow thicker, 

 but ought to thin them out to that distance when 

 danger of gaps is past. 



Broccoli. — Round about this time seeds of the very 

 late broccoli are sown, and the later in season this is 

 done the greater the length of the supply. Any of the 

 three or four sorts that are most in favour — such as 

 Model, Last of All, Late Champion, Methuen's June — 

 will, if seeds are sown now, be in use at this time next 

 year, and welcome they will be to those who survive to 

 eat them. The mild winter that is past and the recent 

 warm weather caused quite a lot of these to tumble into 

 readiness all at once, thus curtailing our supply by a 

 fortnight or more. 



Book Notices. 



Ferns. 



Every lover of wild plants is interested in 

 ferns, and every gardener recognises their value as 

 decorative subjects when planted in situations 

 that favour their free growth and full development 

 of foliage. Vet, excepting a few of the very com- 

 monest species, the generality of gardeners - profes- 

 sional and amateur alike — are practically unfamiliar 

 with the names and characters of the forty odd species 

 that are native to these islands. This is perhaps due 

 not so much to a lack of interest in the subject as to the 

 want of a book written in plain language, and suited to 

 the requirements of people unfamiliar with the botahical 

 technicalities of the schools. Such a book is the one 

 before us,* in which Mr. Francis George Heath presents, 

 in his usual lucid and popular style, a series of accurate 

 descriptions of forty-five species of ferns, most of which 

 are native to this country. The book is of convenient 

 size for the pocket, and is well illustrated with fifty 

 illustrations that will prove most helpful to beginners 

 in the field. 



In the chapter devoted to a comparison of seeds and 

 spores there is an unfortunate confusion of ideas as well 

 as misstatements and apparent contradictions, but this, 

 after all, is a small matter in a book intended as a 

 " pocket help for the collector." 



To any one desirous of devoting some of his spare 



* British Ferns: a Pocket "Help" for the Collector, by Francis 

 George Heath. Sir Isaac Pitman & Sons, Ltd. 2s. 



time to the study of ferns in the field cannot do belter 

 than to get and to use this little book as a help towards 

 becoming acquainted with the species growing in his own 

 locality. For a summer holiday it is just the book to 

 take in one's pocket when rambling over the country. 



The "Irish Rev'iew." -With the month of June the 

 hish Revieiv reaches its fourth number. This periodical 

 improves with each issue, and readers with literary taste 

 will find much to interest them in its ample pages. The 

 type used and the whole "get up" of the magazine 

 make it a positive pleasure to read. Not that the con- 

 tents need the beautiful setting to commend it to the 

 reading public. It deals essentially with Ireland, and 

 its promoters have succeeded in securing the services 

 of some of the best literary men and women in the 

 country. The foremost leader in the present revival of 

 letters in Ireland - Standish O'Grady— contributes a 

 wonderfully graphic article on an episode in ancient 

 history, and applies it to present-day conditions in 

 Ireland. John B. Yeats' painting of Mr. O'Grady, hung 

 in the Mimicipal Art Gallery of Dublin, is reproduced in 

 the present number. George W. Russell continiies his 

 remarkable and outspoken series of articles on the 

 " Problem of Rural Life in Ireland," which ought to be 

 lead by every one interested in the future of the country, 

 and, as the Aberdeen Free I'ress says, by every rural 

 reformer in the three kingdoms. Literary articles, 

 poetry, sketches and the continuation of James Stephens' 

 clever story dealing with lowly life in Dublin go to 

 make up the interesting contents of a magazine that 

 has already found its place among the monthlies. It is 

 sold at sixpence. 



A Progressive Horticultural Society. 



A Suggestion to the Council of the Roval 

 Horticultural Society of Ireland. 



Wk have received a copy of the first number of the 

 Monthly Magazine and Circular issued by the North of 

 England Horticultural Society. The idea of publishing 

 such a journal is excellent, and we sincerely congratulate 

 the society in its enlightened public spirit in providing 

 its members with such a medium of inter-communication. 

 It consists of a neat little pamphlet of 32 pages of reading 

 matter, put up in a coloured wrapper, well printed on 

 good paper and illustrated. It begins with a full list of 

 the members of the different committees and of its 

 fellows, followed by a series of interesting reports, 

 papers and information as to forthcoming meetings, 

 shows, lectures, &c. 



The first article deals with a suggested scheme of 

 education for a young gardener, drawn up by the 

 secretary, the Rev. Bernard Hall, and this is followed 

 by a thoughtful paper on the qualifications of a 

 gardener, by a member of one of the committees. 

 Then there is a full report of a lecture on "Soil Germs 

 and Plant Food," given by Dr. E. J. Russell, of the 

 Rothampsted Research Station, in which some of the 

 latest results of science bearing upon horticultural 

 practice are described with fascinating interest. It will 

 thus be seen that the society is making a bold attempt 

 to realise the primary object for which it was estab- 

 lished — namely, to be "educational in the broadest 



