IRISH GARDENING 



(-aiulici Oiticisin aiul Notes on 

 I Icrlxiccous Plants. 



Artfi/thitt litftijlnra. — One looks to the Woi'miwoikIs 

 foi" pl.'nUs ofinotliciii.'il qiialittos and not decor iitivc value, 

 bill this new C liinese species has been hijjhly praised as a 

 novelly and liguied beatilifully in some calaloijnes. 

 but photds are often deceptive. Speakinj^ from an 

 experience of two or three summers with the plant, it 

 entirely depends upon the soil wlielher it is worthy of 

 Ih.e praise bestowed. On a light dry soil it is a poor, 

 miserable plant, but in a moist retentive soil it makes a 

 line bold specimen, growing four or five feet high, 

 and also does well near the waterside. The creamy 

 while flowers are produced in .'lutumn on branching 

 llowcr spikes, and arc sweel-scenled. .\l a distance 

 one gets the impression of a gianl Spira;a or Aslilbe. 



Gciim coccliiciim Mrs. Bnu/s/uTH'. — This variety can 

 be recommended to one and all without any reservation, 

 for it is a really fine novelty. For cutting and border 

 decoration it is a welcome addition ; the flowers are 

 semi-double, two inches or so across, produced from 

 June uniil October. .\s it can be purchased for a small 

 amount, those who stage for exhibition should not he 

 without a few roots. One must remember that all 

 double and semi-double floweied plants pay for good 

 soil and culture. A gardener would not think of 

 starving a Chrysanthemum, then why starve plants such 

 as these ? It is a great mistake to starve such flowers, 

 for not only does one get belter blooms by manuring, 

 but also a more continuous supply. Geums are not 

 fastidious as to soil, but it may be a revelation to many 

 lo know th.it (leum coccineum, where it grows wild as 

 in S. Europe, is often found in great quantity on the 

 banks of streams or the edges of boggy places. A 

 truly gorgeous show it makes. 



MuiHiri/it didyiiia is known respectively as the 

 "Oswego Tea," "Bee ,Balm," or "Bergamot." 

 This fine old plant deserves a place in every garden. 

 It is sometimes .said to grow in any position or soil, 

 but this is not so, for it prefers a moisture-holding 

 compost to root into. In one garden with a light soil 

 it w.is tried in many places, and cow manure, &c., was 

 mixed with the soil, all without much success. Finally it 

 was put in a bog bed, and now it simply romps away 

 and has lo be held in check or would smother every- 

 ihing. The growth is two or three feet high, with 

 bright scarlet flowers borne in whorl like heads in 

 summer. 



Monarda didyma alba, with while flowers, is not so 

 decorative as the type. The variety called M. d. 

 violacea superba may appeal to those who like violet 

 purple, but the Cambridge Scarlet form is the brightest 

 of all. 



M. fistulo.sa, also from N. .-\merica, is sometimes 

 recommended as a border plant, with pale-purple 

 flowers, but il cannot be compared favourably with 

 M. didyma. 



Pbysostegia '^'irginiaiia, called the "False Dragon's 

 Head," is another old plant, but of considerable value 

 when grown well. 



P. virginiana alba is a desirable white variety, and 



gr.iuditlora is pink anil l;tf ger-tlowercil th.'iii the type. 

 They grow from two lo five feet high, according lo 

 whether one treats them well or otherwise. Like other 

 l-abi:ites the stems are square and lea\es opposite, and 

 the flowers are borne in spikes on short stalks. The 

 name is derived from the bladder nature of the calyx. 

 The flowers have a curious botanical interest in that 

 they are c.italeplic — that is lo say, if one touches ihinn 

 moving them to one side or the other, they remain 

 where they are put, working just as if the flower Kl.'dk> 

 were hinged. 



Pliygeliiis aipciisis, Cii/>f JlgTi'ort. — The l-'igworls have 

 a strange attraction for wasp.s. The generic name 

 comes from "flight from the sun"; experience in 

 Ireland contradicts this theory, for I'hygelius thrives 

 where it gets full sun. Unlike the other plants we have 

 considered, it prefers a light, warm soil. In ICngland 

 it is usually classed and described as herbaceous, 

 and is not too hardy there, although usually hardy in 

 Irel.ind. When cut down and treated like other her- 

 baceous subjecls it will make a good display every 

 year. Yet it is not herbaceous. If one goes to 

 the Duke of Leinster's garden at Carton no doubts 

 remain as to its shrubby nature, for there it is over 

 twelve feet high on a wall, and when in flower is a 

 glorious sight during the .autumn months. The flowers 

 are tubular, pendulous, scarlet in colour with a yellow 

 throat. Cullings of the young growth strike easily, 

 and so may be increased by this method. 



" Tai'IiV." 



ITlie writer has a very good experience of herbaceous 

 plants, and the editor institutes this column hoping 

 that it may be lo the advantage of his readers if they 

 can have plants frankly discussed without bias, giving 

 praise only when it is due. If readers desire to lake 

 advantage of this column, they should send in names 

 of plants about which they desire information. In 

 return, please introduce this magazine to friends 

 interested in gardening.- Kl'., I. O.] 



^3* 8^* v^ 



Fro.st. 

 SoMK amateurs lose plants in frames by being too 

 anxious to uncover them, for even when plants have 

 been frozen hard they have a much better ch.-»nce 

 of recovery if the mats are left on the frame for a 

 day after the frost has gone, for then their thawing 

 will be a gradual one. The theory of how plants are 

 injured by frost is that the sap, like water in freezing, 

 contracts until it reaches four degrees centigrade, then 

 swells in becoming colder, and on turning lo ice ihc 

 swelling bursts the cell wall. In a rapid ihaw ll»e sap 

 escapes and is lost, but in a gradual one it is parlly re- 

 absorbed by the living cell contents or protoplasm. 

 Another theory is that the plants perish from drought. 

 The living shoots are giving off water-vapour which 

 cannot be replaced during a frosl. When roses or shrubs 

 are received during a hard frost it is a good plan to lay 

 in a dark shed or cellar and sprinkle with cold waier. To 

 protect a plant in the open which is at all tender give the 

 ground a good mulching with dead le.ives, strawy 

 manure or ashes, and if a shrub, place some bracken or 

 evergreen branches through the head. 



