IRISH GARDENING 



39 



enler tliis dish it will rise lo ihe level of the 

 .six-inch overllow in front, :in<.l somelhiny^ less 

 at the hack, owint^ to the slope of the lloor, 

 while if the bottom valve is opened no water 

 whatever will remain in tlie dish. 



Into this compartment i put broken bricks 

 of about the size o( one's list, to the depth of 

 six inches, and upon this a layer two inches or 

 so deep of stones, just large enough to liil in 

 the spaces between the larg-er pieces, and so 

 prevent the finer soil from sifting- in between 

 them and so choking the drainage. 



Upon this intermediate layer I put the 

 moraine soil proper, consisting, for the lower 

 stratum, o( sandstone chips which had passed 

 through a half-inch or three-quarter-inch sieve, 

 and for the upper, such as had passed the 

 iiuarter-inch sieve, while to eliminate the very 

 line particles 1 put the whole of this througli 

 a one-eighth-inch sieve. 



To the upper six inches I added the merest 

 trace of well-decayed leaf soil, probably about 

 one part to fifteen of stone chips. 



When the compartment was full 1 placed 

 here and there good-looking pieces of stone, 

 to break the otherwise flat expanse of chips, 

 and near to these the moraine plants themselves 

 nestle. 



It we have a stream of water, however 

 small, in the Rock Garden a little ingenuity 

 will enable this to be diverted so as to supply 

 the moraine, and during the growing season 

 the lower valve should be closed, thus allowing 

 the water to rise and overflow at the six-inch 

 outlets, and thence into the bog-bed, while 

 about September this water supply may be 

 discontinued, and bj' October or November the 

 lower outlet should be opened, and remain so 

 until the return of spring. 



In the absence of a water supply hand water- 

 ing at frequent intervals can be resorted to with 

 good results. 



During the winter, to protect the crowns of the 

 plants from overhead wet, sheets of glass may 

 be erected on three or four bent wires in such a 

 way as to intercept the rain and yet allow a 

 constant current of air to pass over them. If 

 the glass is large enough it may be four or five 

 inches above the plant, which entirely avoids any 

 "coddling," and with an occasional cleaning 

 will not cause the plants to " draw." 



.A very good substitute for sandstone chips 

 is broken brick or, better still, broken tiles, 

 though if lime-hating plants are to be grown 

 all old mortar should be cleaned oft" the bricks 

 before they are broken. 



Upon a moraine so constructed such plants 

 as the following will be found to thrive: — 

 -■Ethionoma coridifolium, Androsace Laggeri, 

 .A. lanuginosa, .Anemone vernalis, -A. narcissi- 

 flora, Arenaria balearica, Campanula Allionii, 



C. alpina, C. cenisia, C. morcttiana, C. pulla, 

 C. Zoysii, C. excisa, Dianlluis alpinus, D. 

 glacialis, Draba pyrenaica, D. aizoides, Cieum 



reptans, Gypsophila cerastioides, Houstonia 

 cieridea, Linaria alpina, Lychnis alpina, Primula 

 integrifolia, 1'. glulinosa, P. viscosa, I', minima. 

 Ranunculus glacialis, R. alpestris, R. parnassi- 

 folius, Saxifraga aizoides, .S. .Aizoon, S. opposi- 

 tifolia, Douglasia vitaliana, Hdraianthus pu- 

 milio, Silene acaulis, Viola biflora, Thlaspi 

 rotundifolia. 



Mo\ing Large Shrubs 



Hy J. W. Besant, Royal Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin. 



IT often happens in the course of alterations thai a 

 large shrub or small tree has to be removed from 

 one part of the g-arden to .mother, especially if the 

 spi'L-iinen be a rare one or particularly good of its kind. 



In the case of specimens growing in soil naturally 

 conducive to the formation of fibrous roots no difticully 

 will be experienced in moving tlio plant with a ball of 

 soil attached. Frequently, however, it is found that 

 roots are few. consisting only of a few strong thick 

 ones, nearlv fibreless and quite unsuited to sustaining 

 the plant wiien removed. In such a case preparations 

 for transplanting must be made quite twelve months 

 beforehand. Briefly, this amounts to inducing the 

 formation of a quantity of fibrous roots by root pruning, 

 and is simply a modification of the nursery practice of 

 frequently moving young stock to encourage the 

 formation of a fibrous root system. .A trench one loot 

 wide must be opened round the specimen at such a 

 distance from the centre as will leave a ball of suitable 

 dimensions for removal. .All thick roots should be 

 severed close to the ball, the trench being carried 

 down till just below the root level. The trench may 

 then be filled in again, adding a quantity of good fresh 

 soil io encourage the formation of fibres during the 

 next year, when transplanting may be safely .iccom- 

 plished the following autumn. 



The final stage in' the work consists of again opening 

 a trench a little outside the limits of the one previously 

 made, carefully working off the loose soil with a fork 

 until the fibrous roots are reached. Before attempting 

 to undermine the ball it should be tightly bound up 

 with a strip of canvas or stout sacking, against which 

 is laid five or six pieces of narrow boards at intervals 

 round the ball. Ropes must be tied over the boards. 

 one at the top of the ball and another at the bottom, 

 both being keyed up as tightly as possible by means of 

 short sticks. 'By this means the ball is tightly com- 

 pressed, and may be cut under without fear of falling to 

 pieces. By tilting the ball to one side a mat partially 

 rolled up niay be passed half-way under, the ball being 

 then tilted back in the opposite direction and the rolled 

 portion of the mat pulled through to the opposite side. 

 In this way the shrub may be lifted bodily and trans- 

 ferred to its new home.' These directions apply to 

 shrubs capable of being moved by manual labour. 

 Larger specimens require a transplanting machine and 

 preparation accordingly. 



The present is a good time to prepare any large 

 plants which have to "be moved. Towards the end of 

 March and throughout .Xpril, whenever the weather is 

 suitable, small plants of most evergreens may be 

 planted with everv hope of success. Windy days 

 should be avoided' and a good watering given ; this, 

 followed Ijy a mulching of leaves or rotten manure, will 

 keep the roots cool and moist. 



