I So 



IRISH GARDENING 



^cstinir tl\i)se of tho Pyraeantlia. I'uli'ss lakcn 

 Ity tlu' \)'n\U tlu' fruits haii<f (»ii tlu> tn-cs. 

 and ait' onianiciit il well into a new year. 



It is a naive of tlio Kastcrn Tniti'd Statrs. 

 ami is said to have ln-ni liisl itil lOiluccd to 

 liiitaiii ahotit ITiJS 



A. O. 



Cyriila Racciniflora. 



This lati'-llowcrinu- sliiiil) is a native of the 

 I''ast('ni Tniteil States. Kioni tliis locality it is 

 not siirinisiiig to find that the phints thrive 

 best in tlie southern antl western (larts of the 

 British Isles. In other localities the foot of a. 

 sunny soutli or west wall is the best position. 



Cyiilla raceniiflora in its native lionie is said 

 to l)e a large busli or small tree, but with us it 

 is a comparatively small shndi up to throe or 

 f lur feet high. The small white flowers are 

 freely produced on slender racemes, up to si>v 

 inches long, in ])eauty from Septembei- until 

 November. 



]*i()|iagation is by cuttings made of half- 

 mature shoots inserted in a close, slightly -heated 

 frame dining late summer. A well-drained 

 sandy loam, to which peat and leaf -mould is 

 added, fonr.s a suitable soil. 



A. O. 



The Alpine Garden. 



The busy weeks f)f autumn have now passed, 

 and all reconstructing, replanting, thinning out 

 and cutting bac'c have been done. 



During the next few months our alpines have 

 to face their worst enemy, the damp, which 

 afifects every one of the higher alpines, but is 

 particularly severe on the plants with dow^ny 

 foliage, to which protection must be given. 



A pane of glass, supported at the corners by 

 stones, sticks or glass, is all that is necessary for 

 each plant, but the covering of the bigger 

 stretches of Androsace Chumbyi, Sarmentosa, 

 lanuginosa (and Potentilla nitida here) is not 

 such a simple matter. 



A small light, if it can be procured, is excellent, 

 but if not, a double layer of white butter-paper 

 placed between two pieces of rabbit ware the 

 required size, and supported at each corner by 

 a small stake, to which it can be firmly tied, 

 answers the purpose; but, of course, must be 

 renewed about every two months. 



The alpine house and all frames, including the 

 Primula frame, have been gone through, drainage 

 seen to in each pot, and repotting done w^^here 

 iiecessarj'. 



Any Primulas wdiich looked sick were potted 



u]» in peat and line sand, ami hav(> reeovei-ed 

 wonderfully. 



The Se|itember juopagat ions aic now ready 

 for potting, and this is being (liiiic when the 

 weather iirevents outdoor work. 



There aic also pleiit \" of s(>e(llings ready for 

 pricking out into i>o.\es or pans. This work 

 should l)e done as soon as possible, as late 

 Deeeniliei' and .Fanuary are very bad times for 

 changing the ((uart(^rs of tender st^dlings. 



The outdoor work being carried on at tlie 

 monuMit is chielly a general tidying u]i. ami when 

 the weathei' is favourable topdressing is done. 

 In large al])ine gardens it is im])ossiblo to get 

 all the topdressing done in the s])ring, iniless, of 

 course, a large number of hands are kept : so it 

 is a great help to have some i>lants attended to 

 before that busy season is u])on us. 



All Androsaces have been to])dressed with 

 sand, loam, leaf-mould and lime-rubble ; al])ine 

 Phloxes have been given a ric^her com])ost ; 

 Primula " Dusty Miller," sand, loam, and a 

 little peat ; and such Primulas as Cashmiriana 

 have been given a slight to])dressing of cow 

 manure. 



The autumn garden was exceptionally l^right 

 tin's year, helped greatly by the gorgeous colour- 

 ing of the shrubs : Cercidiphylluin Japonicum, 

 Acers palmatum, rubrum, and others, and 

 Berberis thunbergii being particularly noted. 



At the moment w^e are kept very busy brushiiig 

 up the leaves of the deciduous shrubs, as they 

 are a great danger to alpine plants. 



Amongst the small plants especially noted 

 this year are Raoulia australis, a delightful 

 subject for the moraine, with a creeping habit 

 and silvery foliage ; Linum salsoloides nana, 

 flourishing in partial moraine ; Viola " Crimson 

 Crown," with charming purple and cream 

 flowers, and C.yananthus lobatus. 



This last-named, a native of Chinese Tartary, 

 with wonderful flowers of indigo-blue, was 

 planted out in March in peat and loam on the 

 shaded slope at the side of the moraine. Here it 

 started to bloom in July, and flowered inces- 

 santly vuitil late November. 



Cuttings were taken in July, rooted under a 

 cap glass, and potted iip in August, and put in a 

 frame for the winter. 



Cuttings taken early are an advantage, as it 

 gives the young plant time to become established 

 in its pot before it goes to rest for the wint-^r. 



Cyananthus incanus is also beautiful, easily 

 prox)agated in the same way ; it is, however, a 

 more difficult plant to keep. 



Iberis stylosa is another pretty alpine worth 

 noting, propagated very freely from seed. 



M. E. 

 Nov. 13th, 1915. 



