76 



IRISH GARDENING 



the whole mossj- section. All of these are beiiefiled 

 by a topdressing of gritty soil, worked in among the 

 growths once or twice a year, and I find they are best 

 propagated by pulling to pieces and replanting deeply 

 about early September. 



Of the encrusted sections, which are perhaps the most 

 decorative of all, with their lime-encrusted rosettes of 

 silver, "packing" into such charming hummocks, so 

 remaining all through the dull days of winter, and then 

 breaking forth in .\pril and May into myriads of trusses, 

 with red-spotted white flowers daintily arranged 

 thereon. Sax. Aizoon is probably the easiest. Planted 

 in a sunny position, but where the gritty limy soil will 

 never be really dry, it increases rapidly by throwing 

 offsets from the parent rosette, and this is a ready 

 means of propagating it. The varieties rosea and 

 lutea are very dainty and thrive equally well. 



For some bolder position or shoulder in the rock 

 garden. Sax. Hostii. with its rosettes some three inches 

 or four inches in diameter, makes a good plant ; 

 while for the most effective display, coupled with ease 

 of cvillivalion, probabl)' S. Cotyledon and its var. 

 pyramidalis is hard to equal. 



Close under the eye, the more refined Sax. cochlearis 

 and its var. minor is very pleasing, especially when in 

 flower. I find the small form thrives best if packed 

 into a sloping fissure, where it will entirely fill its nitch 

 and spread its silvery cushion on to the adjacent rocks. 



Crevices in some almost vertical face of rock, well 

 exposed to the sun, and backed by ample gritty, limy 

 soil, should be reserved for the lovely solitary, star-like 

 rosettes of the " Queen of the Saxifrages," where thej' 

 will attract the eye every day of the year, and as the 

 plants increase in size season by season it becomes 

 apparent how aptly they are named S. longifolia. 



Of the last group I shall here touch upon, which 

 make more or less hard, spiny, somewhat hedgehog- 

 like cushions of green or grey foliage, Sax. apiculata is 

 the easiest to grow, covering itself in March with 

 pale sulphur-coloured flowers borne three or four on a 

 short stem. 



S. Elizabethie is very little more difficult to make 

 quite at home, with its red stems and deeper yellow 

 flowers, while one of the most beautiful of this group is 

 S. burseriana, often flowering in January and February. 

 The foliage is quite prickly and of a greyish hue, and 

 rising therefrom on crimson stalks are pure white 

 flowers of a dainty satin-like texture, which, if the 

 weather is not too violent, last a considerable time. 



These last three .Saxifrages seem to prefer an open 

 sunny position in deep, fairly moist, gritty soil, com- 

 posed of equal parts of loam, leaf-mould, old mortar 

 rubbish and sand, and when this is well mixed I add an 

 equal bulk of broken brick which has passed through 

 a half-inch sieve. I also place about the plants pieces 

 of sandstone, half buried in the soil, to prevent the too 

 r<'ipid evaporation of nii->isture. 



^* ^W s5^ 



I pray to you whojn God gives gardens, lend 

 This happy solace which the flowers bestow; 



Where pain oppresses, and where few befriend 

 To cheer their sulTering and to soothe their woe. 



— .Initn. 



Hints to Amateurs. 



SWEET PE.A.S. — Seedlings resulting from seeds 

 sown in pots last month may now be planted in 

 their permanent quarters. Open the ground to a 

 depth of two and a half to three feet and place maume 

 in the bottom, and cover this with some good fresh clay. 

 If water has been withheld from the pots for a d;i\- they 

 will turn out with very little trouble. The roots should 

 he disturbed as littfe as possible, and in cases w-here 

 the seed was thinly sown, it will be sufficient only to 

 remove the crocks and drainage from the base of the 

 "ball." Plant in the pi'epared ground and fill in, 

 making all firm but not "brick hard," leaving the soil 

 slightly below the level of the surrounding surface, 

 which will prevent the water and liquid feedings running 

 oft and being wasted. Water thoroughly and give 

 them support. 



St.vki.ng. —There are various metliodsfor this -patent 

 pea trainers, wire netting, "Simplicitas " netting, &c., 

 prices for all of which can be found through the 

 advertisements of this paper. But the old-fashioned 

 branched pea stakes, where they can be had, good and 

 strong, are hard to beat ; they are as good and certainly 

 look as well as any form of wire netting. 



X'toLI'-.Ts. — .\s soon as these ^o out of flower the)- niiiy 

 be divided up if new beds are wanted. Lift the plants, 

 shake all soil from the roots and divide them, keeping 

 only the btst and strongest pieces. These should be 

 replanted at once in rich ground in semi-shade. \'ioleIs 

 will never be satisfactory glowing in full sun nor in dry 

 light soil, no matter how much manure may be added, 

 and for this reason you seldom, if ever, see really good 

 violets in a town garden, because- there the soil is more 

 often than not lime and brick rubbish which the 

 contr.'ictor puts into the garden sooner than carl away. 

 The ideal spot for X'iolets is newly-tilled land, where 

 you gel long-stalked flowers and strong, healthy foliage. 

 Water the plants as soon as planted, and repeat if the 

 weather be dry. Violets may also be grown in a 

 succession as recommended for strawberries— that is, 

 ha\ing three planlalions. and not keeping- an_\- o^ the 

 plants after the thiril year, in which case the one and 

 two-year-old planis need onlj- have the runners cut 

 now, the vacancies filled up, and a top dressing given. 



Daht.ias. — These may be planted out towards the 

 end of the month for autumn flowering, in good rich 

 soil It is a good plan to place a stake in the hole at 

 the same lime as planting, thus preventing any injury 

 to the tubers. The varieties are endless and can be 

 had from all nurserymen. 



OiTiioOR Chrvsantheml'ms- These may also bo 

 planted in well-prepared ground. .Among- the best may 

 be mentioned— Goacher's Crimson, Hionze Massee, 

 Elslob yellow and Horace Mai tin, two good yellows ; 

 Rol des Blancs and White Mad. Desgrange. '1 here 

 are also the new single varieties and small pompimis. 

 Snowstorm and l'".v;i Grantham, two good suigle whiti-^. 

 and Carrie Luxford. single crimson, 



Bi-:iMiiNG-iHT Pi ANTS. These may be collected, and 

 on a. dull day planting may commence with such plants 

 as Geraniums, Lobelias. Calceolarias, .Alyssums. &c., 

 &c. Plant close, as bedding out can only look reall)' 

 effective when the plants are so close togetlur as to 

 entirely hide the soil. Keep a few of each kind back 

 in c.-ise of accidents. Where the same beds as have 

 held the spring liedding have to be filled, bulbs can be 

 lifted and placed in a trench in shade to dry olT. If 

 this is done as soon as they are lifted, and the roots not 

 allowed to dry, they will suffer little check. 



