IRISH GARDENING 



45 



To all interested iu alpines I say " sow seeds," 

 and then you will have, among many others, as I 

 have at present, fifty nice ])lants of Ramondia 

 ])yrenaica from one pod of seed sown as soon as 

 ripe in 1913. 



Notes. 

 Gardening for Amateurs. 



The concluding part — number 21 — is now out, 

 and continues the notes on vegetables. The 

 article concludes with a very useful and complete 

 table showing " Vegetable Growing at a Glance," 

 an excellent and reliable guide for amateurs. 

 Following this are several images devoted to 

 " Odds and Ends of Interest," dealing with such 

 divers subjects as Soot and Bone-meal, Making 

 Wood Ashes, Kartlnvorms, a Simple Propagator, 

 How to Estal)]is}i Mistletoe, and other equally 

 interesting paragraphs. A very complete and. 

 handy index occupies many pages, and when 

 incorporated in the bound volume will be of 

 inestimable value. We can only conclude this 

 series of reviews by heartily commending 

 " Gardening for Amateurs " to the notice of all 

 who wish to have by them a complete guide to the 

 elements of gardening. 



Mr. J. Cussen. 



Mr Cussen, previous to the outbreak of war, was 

 gardener to Mr. W. Verschoyle, W^oodley, Dun- 

 drum, and is well known among Sweet Pea 

 enthusiasts in the Dublin district. War being 

 declared he loyally volunteered and joined 134 

 Battery, R. F. A., as a gunner. Mr. Cussen was 

 on leave in .Janviary, and before returning on the 

 21st of that UTonth found time to send a few lines 

 to Irish Gardening. Landing in France on the 

 11th of August, he was at the battle of Mons and 

 in all the engagements from there to near Paris. 

 His Battery also took part in the advance to the 

 Aisne, and subsequently went to Flanders and 

 assisted in checking the advance on Calais. 



In spite of his severe experiences Mr. Cussen is 

 still as keen as ever on his favourite flower, and 

 on the eve of returning to duty recommended the 

 following varieties as impossible to beat : — Marks 

 Tey, Rosina, Edward Cowdy. Bolton's Orange, 

 Dobbies' Cream, Maud Holmes, Mi-s. E. Cowdy, 

 Mrs. Breadmore, The Comet, Paradise White, 

 Pearl, and Rosabelle. 



We will all ho])e for Mr. Cussen's safe return 

 and an early entry to the peaceful arena of the 

 exhibition tent. 



Pyracantha crenulata. 



Under this name, or tliat of Crataegus creuuiata, 

 we have had a Himalayan evergreen shrub 

 growing in our gardens for some years. It is on 

 the borderland of hardiness, and unless growing 

 under the shelter of a wall or fence suffers during 

 severe winters, exce{)t in the south and west. 



Among the Chinese trees and shrubs is a very 

 ])romising form of this Pyracantha which Mr. Fj. 

 II. Wilson found growing "at an ailitude of 10,000 

 to 11,000 feet in Western Hui.eh and Western 

 Szech'uan, while Dr. Henry had jneviously 

 coUected si)ecimens in Yunnan. Mr. Wilson 

 describes it as a very common shrub, and states 

 that the natives use the leaves when dried as tea. 



The plants raised from seeds sent home by Mr. 

 Wilson are nmch freer in growth and more loose 



in habit than the Himalayan form. The bushes 

 produce quantities of white flowers followed in 

 autumn by orange-scarlet fruits, which hang on 

 the itlants when not taken by the ])irds until the 

 new year. A number of ])lants are fruiting freely 

 at Kew, and at a recent meeting of the Royiil 

 Horticultural Society a beautiful sjiecimen was 

 exhibited by the Hon. Vicary Gibbs. 



We must wait for severe frosts to prove the 

 hardiness of the Chinese form, which one hopes 

 will be at least ecjual to P. coccinea. At all events, 

 in the south and west of Great Britain, and in 

 Ii'eland, the subject of this note will be a welcome 

 addition to the evergreens in the jdeasure grounds. 



A. OSBORN. 



Ruellia macrantha. 



The Ruellias are soft wooded plants having a 

 sonxewhat erect habit of growtli and trumi)et- 

 shaped flowers, and in the ca.-5e of the ])lant 

 quoted above are produced during the winter 

 months. 



The colour of R. macrantha is rosy-purple, 

 lirettily veined in the throat, and a small batch is 

 very desirable and interesting through the dull 

 period of the year. After the ]dants have 

 flowered, they are cut back slightly, and then if 

 sprayed over occasionally will soon form nice 

 sturdy shoots which make ideal cuttings. These 

 are taken during the present month, and are 

 inserted in sandy soil, and if placed in a warm 

 moist frame, such as is found, in most stoves, they 

 will readily form roots. When this stage is 

 reached, each cutting should be given a se]jarate 

 existence, using 60 size pots for the first potting. 

 As root action increases a larger receptacle must 

 be provided, until a 32 or 24 size pot is required- 

 in which the plants will bloom. The comi)ost 

 consists of fibrous loanx three parts and leaf- 

 naould one part, to which is added a generous 

 sprinkling of silver sand- Throughout the 

 summer months a light position near the glass 

 should be chosen, but a slight shading will be 

 necessary when the sunlight is exceptionally 

 strong. The young plants must be pinched in 

 the early stages of their career, to encourage side 

 shoots and to prevent them becoming tall and 

 leggy, when their beauty to a great extent is lost. 



Keep the i)lants free of insect pests, then little 

 difficulty will be experienced in growing Ruellias 

 to perfection. 



In addition to R. macrantha there are R. 

 Baikiei, scarlet: R. Herbsti, ])uri)le ; R. rosea, 

 carmine-rose, which blooms in the summer ; and 

 R. Portella;, rose-])ink. but they are more rare 

 than the subject of this note. 



T. W. B. 



f^ a^ t^ 

 COKONIl.J.A CAPPADOCICA. 



The interesting note by T. W. B. leads me to 

 s])eak of C. cappadocica, rarely seen in gardens, 

 and which is certainly the best s])ecies for rock 

 gardens. The plant is very low and s})reatliiig. 

 creeping over the soil. In the months May lu 

 Se])tember it is covered with dense cai>itulcs of 

 dee]) yellow flowers, wiiich are one of the beauties 

 of a garden. As the jilant is very hardy, and as 

 easy to grow as its near ally ( *. montana. it is to 

 be reconimended t'O everyl)ody. From seeds it 

 comes quickly, and flowers the lirst year. C. 

 montana is a. higlier plant, very lloriferuus t^i... 

 and flo\\ering from May to August. 



H. CORREVON. 



