JANUARY 



IRISH GARDENING 



Notes from Glasnevin. 



By R. M. Pollock. 



DURING these dark winter months we have little 

 to interest us out of doors, and must, therefore, 

 look elsewhere for it and for brig-ht colour. 

 This we find as usual in the conservatories at Glasnevin. 

 In the larg-e cold house we find many of the Australian 

 plants, among- them the Acacias, A. ovata, with its pretty 



pandanus, dracaenas, and the varieg-ated form of the 

 " indiarubber tree," Fictts elastica variegafa. 



In the larg-e conservatory, known as the camellia 

 house, we come to the brig-htest display of all. Some 

 of the first pot daffodils are to be seen, among- them 

 Henry Irvingf and Golden Spur, two of the best early 

 }-eIlows. The zonal pelarg-oniums make a fine show, in 

 which Athlete, Jacquerie, and V'eteran stand out best. 



On one side are g-roups of two species of Primula, the 

 well-known P. sinensis and /'. obconica, both Chinese 





ThK ORCHin HorSK, BoTANK- CiAROKNS, Cil.AS.M 



IN" Dkcember 



(C. /•'. Hall 



round balls of yellow flowers, contrasting; well with the 

 dark green foliag-e, and A. leprosa, with longf g-raceful 

 sprays of flowers which are pale yellow. The well-known 

 Genista fragrans, just coming- into bloom, and a small 

 shrub, also a native of Australia, and belonging; to the 

 saxifrage order, called Baucra riibioides, with pink 

 flowers. This shrub seems rarely to be out of flower. 

 Passiiig through the next three compartments, we come 

 to a group of the brightly coloured Poinsettias. now 

 known as Euphorbia pulcherrima. In this plant it is not 

 the flower that renders it so remarkable, but the highly 

 coloured upper bracts. The true flower is small and 

 comparatively inconspicuous. Turning to the left of the 

 stove house we find many of the brightly coloured 

 foliage plants of tropical countries, including the crotons, 



plants. P. obconiia is a good cool house plant, and the 

 various shades of colour now to be had makes it still 

 more valuable for decoration. In this house there are 

 also some of the American winter flowering carnations, 

 among them being \\'liite Lawson, a pure white ; 

 Britannia, bright red ; Winsor, deep pink ; and Enchant- 

 ress, pale pink. 



Passing through the palm house and small fernery 

 we come to the orchid house, where still may be found 

 many beautiful and uncommon orchids. This section 

 is certainly the most varied in colour, form, and habit, 

 of all plant life. Calanthes and Cypripediums are in the 

 majority, and a popular majority'. The pale pink 

 Calanthe Veitchii, a hybrid between C. vestita and C. 

 rosea, raised by Mr. Dominy in Messrs. \'eitch's nursery, 



