FEBRUARY 



IRISH GARDENING, 



25 



The Chrysanthemum. 



I. — General. 



THE chrysanthemum to-day is one of our most 

 popular decorative plants. Very few other 

 garden subjects, cultivated for beauty alone, 

 can claim such a long- period of cultural attention from 

 man as this gorgeous eastern flower. It is believed 

 that the Chinese have cultivated it for over 2,000 years, 

 while every one knows that it has been, and is now, held 

 in the very highest repute, and even reverence, by the 

 Japanese. Its flower forms part of the national arms of 

 Japan, and one of the most popular holidays in that 

 country is "Chrysanthemum Day." It was introduced 

 into Europe about the year 1790 — reaching France first 

 and then England, where its good qualities \\ere soon 

 recognised. Special attention was paid to it in the old 

 gardens of the Royal Horticultural Society at Chiswick, 

 from which cuttings were freely distributed to nursery- 

 men and others. The introduction of the now exceed- 

 ingly popular Japanese varieties is due to the efforts of 

 that noted traveller and plant collector, Robert Fortune, 

 who in i860, under the auspices of the Royal Horti- 

 cultural Societ}-, was travelling in the East in search of 

 new plants. He discovered several varieties of chrysan- 

 themum in Japan with weird-looking flowers, which he 

 sent home to a nurseryman in England. These repre- 

 sented the first lot of Japanese chrysanthemums grown 

 in these islands. When first exhibited they appear to 

 have attracted very little attention, but ten years after- 

 wards they were becoming popular, and since then have 

 enjoyed an ever-increasing popularitj', until at the 

 present day they are first favourites as decorative plants 

 during the declining months of the year. The chrysan- 

 themum belongs to the daisy family {compositce), its 

 nearest relatives in this country being the corn 

 marigold {Chrysanthemum segetum) and ox-eye daisy 

 (C. leucanfheitiiim). Its own botanical name is C. 

 iitdkum, a Chinese plant, having in the wild state small 

 yellow, single "petalled" flowers. 



The cultivation of the chrysanthemum is a fascinating 

 occupation for amateurs in gardening. There is a 

 peculiar and absorbing interest in bringing the plant 

 along through its various stages of development, and 

 potting from the tiny bit of shoot inserted as a cutting, 

 on to the period when it bursts into those gorgeous 

 blooms that have held the admir.ition of millions for 

 generations before the birth of the Founder of the 

 Christian religion up to the present time. Man's interest 

 in this flower has never waned during all these long 

 years, and perhaps at no period of time has the 

 chrysanthemum been held in higher esteem than it is at 

 the present day. To the peoples of the East it is still 

 The Heavenly Interview, while it has of a truth aff"ected 

 the conquest of the West, and is now enthroned among 

 us as the Autumn Queen of Flowers. 



There is not only interest and pleasure attached to 

 the cultivation of the chrysanthemum, but many of the 

 very first principles of gardening may be learned by 

 taking their cultivation in hand from the early stages of 

 growth to the final stages of flowering. We propose, 

 therefore, to give a series of short chapters from month 



to month dealing with the propagation and after-treat- 

 ment of this plant, in the hope that many of our readers 

 who have not attempted its cultivation before will be 

 induced to start upon it at once, and so secure for them- 

 selves not only a delightful recreation but a glorious 

 harvest of bloom when the crowded pageant of summer 

 has passed, and the days shorten, and the sun's heat 

 lessens, and the garden loses much of its wealth of 

 colour and beauty. 



II. — Propagation. 



Amateur gardeners will find much interest in raising 

 their own chrysanthemums from cuttings. In addition 

 to the pleasure obtained in watching the young 

 plants establish themselves it will give excellent 

 practice in propagating herbaceous plants from 

 cuttings. The cuttings are made from the young 

 shoots that spring up from the "stools" of old plants 

 that have been cut down after flowering. If the amateur 

 has no stock already he can always purchase cuttings 

 from the nurseryman at prices varying with the rarity 

 of the variety. Whites, pinks, yellows, and bronzes are 

 general favourites. The cuttings should be fairly strong 

 without being gross, and the wood neither too soft nor too 

 hard. The shoots used may be about two or two and a 

 half inches long. It is prepared for insertion in the soil 

 by making a clean cut with a sharp knife across the 

 stem immediately below a joint, and then removing the 

 leaves from the lower length of stem so that the foliage 

 left will be well clear of the soil when the shoot is in- 

 serted. The soil used for striking should be light and 

 pure ; no manure of any kind must be used. Fineh- 

 sifted loam, to which a little sifted leaf-mould and sand 

 has been added, may be used. The body of the soil 

 is loam, the sifted leaf-mould and sand tend to keep 

 it open, as it is important that the soil should be of an 

 open texture even when fairlj- firmed down so as to 

 admit of a free interchange of air. The propagator 

 must always remember that the wounded end of the 

 cutting must be supplied with fresh air, as breathing is 

 more than ordinary active during the period of new root 

 formation. The cuttings may be struck either in small 

 pots or in shallow boxes. In either case provision must 

 be made for good free drainage, as stagnant water 

 will be fatal to success. The minute soil spaces are 

 required for air, and must never be allowed to hold 

 water. The moisture that naturally adheres to the soil 

 particles will supply abundance of water to the rooting 

 shoots. This is a vital point that caimot be overlooked. 

 Drainage is secured b\- filling the bottom of the pot or 

 box with broken fragments of old flowerpots — " crocks " 

 as they are called by gardeners. The crocks are next 

 covered with a layer of old decayed leaves that act as a 

 filter, preventing the soil being washed down among 

 them. If the pots are half filled with crocks the filtering 

 layering may be left out. The pots are next filled with 

 the prepared soil, and pressed down. The cuttings are 

 now pushed into the soil. If two or three cuttings are 

 put in one pot tiiey should be inserted near the sides. 

 The soil is finally pressed down fairly firm round the 

 cuttings, and watered gently with a fine rose-spout can. 

 The after-watering is a critical operation, and intelli- 

 gence must be used as to its frequency. The pot holding 



