130 



iKisii (;auiji:Mi\g 



centre of County Antrini. in what 1 l)elie\(' to l>e 

 i-liniatieally al>ont tlie most uncon^feiiial s|>ot 

 in all Irelantl. -M\- expeiiciicc of liis niajcsU 

 i.s brieHy as follows: Tiie liist Lull. 1 li.-.d .if 

 liiin ktl)t healthy and lloweiv.l well tor ihf \.v>\ 

 two seasons, and then iiot sick. althoiiLih it still 

 lived and increased, hut se\eral seasons 1 he 

 flowers and Lrrowth wcri' unsatisfactory and 

 very ])oor. then the hnlhs l)e<ian to ]iieU up a<:ain. 

 and (.Gradually heeanie (|uite healthy, and all 

 my stoek 1 am happy to say is now thrivin<j: and 

 inereasing. and triving a wealth of glorious 

 fiowcrs caeh spring- Now. the moral of this 

 story is, do not l)e disheai-tened if some ])recious 

 new tiiilli gocv sick with you. Kee]) it on. lift 

 it and replant it. and nurse it a hit till it gets 

 aeeustometl to your garden and aeelimatised, 

 and ten ehanees to one it will do (piite well in the 

 end. 1 have ])roved tliis from experience of 

 several tlifferent cases. To return to King 

 Alfred, he will grow more easily and better in 

 most parts of Ireland than here, so 1 think you 

 may safely try a few bulbs. I fancy he likes 

 ratlier deeper planting than most others, 

 and probably ]irefers a lightish soil. When he 

 does thrive he grows with enormous vigour, 

 increasing rapidly. The finest King Alfred T 

 liave ever seen growing were in the grounds of 

 the Donard Nursery Co. at Newcastle, Co. 

 Down. A big stock is grown there, and I 

 assure you the flowers were a sight for the gods, 

 and I know tlieir bulbs are simply magnificent, 

 for I have had some ; their Madame de Graaff 

 bulbs also are extraordinarily fine. King 

 Alfred can be had for about 2()s. per dozen. 



If you want a really white Trumpet Daffodil, 

 try Mrs. Rol)ert iSydenham, she is the best. A 

 good grower, though not tall, a most refined and 

 lovely flower with flat overlapping perianth 

 and long smooth trumpet slightly rolled back 

 at the brim. The perianth and trumpet are 

 equally white throughout, and very much 

 whiter than Madame de Graaff. I believe the 

 Lissadell firm at Sligo hold a particularly fine 

 stock. Price, Gs. each. 



To go on to other sections, l.,ady Margaret 

 Boscawen, the grand giant bicolor Incom- 

 parabilis, is becoming fairly well known, and is 

 a splendid flower of great size, with very fine 

 broad, overlapping, clear white perianth, gener- 

 ally flat and of good quahty, with bold clear 

 yellow crown ; it is a very strong grower and 

 fine garden plant. Price, about Is. 9d. each. 

 Of the orange and red -cupped varieties, Lucifer 

 is one of the most satisfactory ; it has a graceful 

 creamy white perianth, and long cuji of glowing 

 brilliant orange which does not fade in the 

 sunhght quite so readily as most others, and 

 the flowers last a most surprising time when cut. 

 Torch is a most decorative flower, ha^^ng a large, 



loose, spreading. Hoppy yelli>w perianth and long 

 cup Hushed with bright orange scarlet, and it is 

 a jilant of huge vigour. In the little Firebrand 

 \\c ha\c the (Iccpcsl ot all t lii' ivd ciowns. its 

 little cup hciiiL; almost ciiiiisoii while t.he 

 starry peiiantli is pale piiiiudsc; it is most 

 elVcctivc in a Imiicli. and comes icmarkal>l\' 

 good in pots; in the garden it glows easily, and is 

 ra]>id of increase. 



Albatross is a grandly \ igoroiis garden plant 

 and great iiu-reasei-. It is a beautiful llowcr 

 of large size, with white perianth and shallow 

 citron crown, blight ly edged with orange, b<MUg 

 a free bloomer and long stemmed ; it is very 

 useful for ciiltin^^-. I'lice. about Is. !»d. pe'r 

 do/,eii. 



For the Dalfodil lover the refined and cool- 

 toned Mowers of the Leedsii section have a 

 s])ecial charm, and no garden should l)e without 

 a few of them. If you cannot, grow nuiiiy, make 

 sure that >'ou have that superlatively flne garden 

 ])lant. White Lady. White Lady attained iier 

 majority last spring, as she flowered flrst with 

 Mr. Engleheart, the raiser, just twenty-one 

 years ago. She grows with simply incredible 

 vigour, increasing with such rapidity that large 

 mother bulbs will become clumps the second 

 year, blooming ])rofusely. 8he can be relied 

 upon to grow anywhere, but I think gives the 

 flnest results in rather heavy or stifle soil ; my 

 own soil is inchned that way, and I get a wealth 

 of magniflcent blooms with 24-inch stems, and 

 great strong bulbs at lifting time. The flower 

 measures 4 inches across when w'ell grown, with 

 fine overla])ping ivory perianth and shallow 

 crinkled soft primrose crown. This variety is a 

 very late bloomer, lasting, as a rule, here until 

 well into May, and is, therefore, most useful 

 for extendhig the season and for late cutting. 

 For such a grand variety the price is now 

 absurdly low at 2s. per dozen. 



Very different in diameter is " Waterwitch," 

 a drooping snowy white flower with a most 

 ])leasing |)erfume. It is ver}' free flowering and 

 of uni(jue and exquisite gracefulness when cut 

 and arranged in a vase on a high shelf. " Fairy 

 Queen " is almost if not quite as jmrc a white 

 as Waterwitch, but is different in character, 

 having a much stiffer stem and pose, and more 

 regular "florists' " type of flower; the foliage 

 is a beautiful cool blue green ; though so delicate 

 •And refined in appearance both of these are free 

 growers anil bloomers, and both are low-priced 

 varieties. 



Before leaving the Leedsii section I must 

 speak of the Giant Leedsiis, which are a race of 

 most beautiful hybrids bred cliiefly from the 

 old Leedsii " Minnie Hume " crossed with pollen 

 of Madame de Graaff and other large Trumpets, 

 Their long stems, graceful outlines, and elegant 



