IRISH GARDENING 



\oi.iMi-; \ii. 



No. So 



A MONTHLY JOURNAL DEVOTED TO THE 



ADXANCRMENT OF HORTICULTURE AND 



ARBORICl'LTURE FN IRELAND 



OCTOBER 

 1912 



s 



prino- 



Bcddin^^ 



LMiRAI 

 BOl 



IT is fortunate that llowers suitable (or the 

 above purpose are practically all easy to 

 yrow, and in this respect, and also a< 

 regards outlay in hard cash, they are within 

 reach of the jjreat majority of those who own 

 ijardens, indeeil nuich more so than the class 

 of plants usually cultivated lor summer effects. 



Bulhs in various varieties, principally 

 Hyacinths, Tidips. Narcissus, Crocus, &c., are, 

 of course, the great stand-hy for this work, and 

 the good standard sorts are now so cheap as to 

 be within reach of all. But here a word o\' 

 caution. If \arieties true to name and colour 

 are required, obtain them from a reliable source 

 even if a little more has to be paid. 



However, apart from bulbs, there is a larger 

 variety of spring flowering plants that may be 

 made available, either planted in masses or, 

 better still, in combination with the v.arious 

 bulbs above named. To mention only a few. 

 Wallflowers, with their sweet perfume and in 

 various colourings, stand an easy first. .Vrabis 

 albida fl. pi. is an invaluable plant for spring 

 work, thoroughly hardy, easily propagaleil 

 Irom cuttings, and the llowers, being borne in 

 great profusion and snow-white, are most 

 accommodating as a ground work to use with 

 the strong, \ivid colours of some of the lidips, 

 &e. Aubrietias in various varieties, but to be 

 used sparingly ;ind with care, (iiant Double 

 Daisies, white and pink ; good strains may now 

 be obtained with flowers larger than a half- 

 crown piece. They seed freely and grow like 

 weeds. The colotired Primrose and its larger 

 brother Polyanthus. X'iolas in various varieties, 

 .and last, but not least, the old favourite Forget- 

 me-Not in diflerent sorts, probably the best o( 



which for bedding work is .Myosotis dissitiflora 

 and .Myosotis alpesiris " Royal Blue " .\ny of 

 the above are cheap to buy, but they are easy 

 to propagate and increase, and all may be 

 grown at home with a minimum of trouble and 

 accommod.'ition. 



.\s regards the actual planting, this should be 

 done as earlv as possible after the summer 

 betiding has been cleared away, and it is well 

 worth while to go to a little trouble in making 

 a good preparation. The writer believes in 

 trenching the beds two spits deep and incorpo- 

 rating four or five inches of very old manure 

 between the top and bottom spit. By the way, 

 cire should be taken not to .allow the manure 

 to come in contact with bulbs o( the Narcissu.s. 

 This serves the double purpose of bringing the 

 dry soil from the bottom of the bed and thus 

 providing congenial conditions for the bulbs, 

 and al.so fertilising the soil in the best way for 

 the occupants of the bed the following summer. 



If sand is available it is desirable in wet 

 weather to spread about half an inch in depth 

 over the whole surface so as to keep the soil 

 from working into mud under the feet of the 

 planter. Part of the sand will be carried down 

 by the planting tool, the best being a blunt 

 pointed "dibber," and so aerate and drain the 

 soil immediately under the bulbs. Very little 

 need be said in the way of instruction as to 

 .tctual planting. It is merely a matter of 

 making as many holes in the bed as there are 

 bidbs to plant : and as regards depth, a safe 

 rule is in or about three times the depth of the 

 bulb. Except when bulbs are planted in com- 

 bination with spring [lowering plants, the 

 -olden rule is to plant thickly— Tulips and 



