14 



IRISH CARDKXIXC 



germinate freely, and this is the besl method of 

 propaga! ion. 



Like tin- Spartium and other almost leafless 

 shrubs this Cytisus breathes and transpires 

 through the numerous pores or stoma found in 

 the epidermis or -kin of the younger branches. 



A- this shrub comes from a wain, it climate 

 than our-, some protection in winter maj be 

 needed when it i- planted in the colder counties. 



c. i\ i;. 



The Cricket-Bat Willow. 



A iMi-i-.i: published in the Kew Bulletin, L907, 

 p. 311, dealt with the identitj of tin- forms of 

 Sal \ whose timbers an- most prized b\ cricket- 

 akers. It was there shown that the best 

 of all willows mi- bat-making is a pyramidal- 

 growing, female form of the hint- willow (Salis 

 alba var- caerulea), which, except for recenl 

 planting, is onlj found in a few Easl Anglian 

 counties. There was one interesting and impor- 

 tant question which, for want of data, could not 

 then be decided, this was whether restriction of 

 the best cricket-bat willow to these eastern 

 counties was due to its being a local variety, or 

 perhaps hybrid, possessing by inheritance those 

 peculiar qualities the cricket-bat maker desires; 

 or. whether those qualites win- din- to. and 

 dependent on. local conditions of climate oi soil. 

 \- i- will known the East Anglian climate is the 

 driesl and sunniest in the United Kingdom, and 

 it was b) no means certain in the opinion of 

 several competent observers thai the timber of 

 tin- cricket-bat willow would retain its peculiar 

 \alu<- if it were produced, say, in the warm, 

 humid climate of Cornwall or in the somewhal 

 similar conditions oi t he wesl of Scotland. Large 

 numbers of cricket-bal willow- have been planted 

 during the past five years, and it has become 

 important to ascertain hov fai the labour and 

 expense incurred in such districts i- likelj to he 

 recompensed. 



Through the kindness of Mr .1. Vrthur ''amp- 

 hell we ai>- able to give an encouraging report on 

 some timber "i cricket bat willow grown on his 

 estate at Arduaine, Lochgilphead, Argyllshire. 

 .Mi'. Campbell, for e perimental purposes, made 

 a i.l.i ni at ion t here of a boul I 50 i rees in 1903 and 



190 1 <>i f these, planted in 1904, having 



attained a diameter in it- trunk of 6 to 7 inches, 

 he cut down and -' ni to Me I '. J. Carter, willow 

 dealer; of Newtown, Waltham Cros . Flerts, to 

 ascerta litability and value for hat-making. 

 Mr. Carter reported thai it was perfectlj satis- 

 factory, ami if ol proper size for crickel ba1 

 making (48 inches in circumference) would have 

 fetched the normal price per cubic foot. This 

 timber, having been grown under a rainfall of 

 a ho u i 60 inches per annum as compared with thai 

 of Easl \iuli.i. which is under 25 inches, appears 

 to afford sufficient pr Lhal its peculiar virtues 



are inherent and not necessaril) dependent on 



its en\ ironment . 



It need hardlj be said thai cutting down trees 

 of the size of the one noted above is wasteful. 

 So much greater is the proportion of woodj 

 t i --U" deposited on the trunk as the tree in< reases 

 in size that, even allowing for compound interest, 

 a loss is incurred by felling trees before th< 



I \ to 2 feel in dianiel er of I l 1 1 1 1 k . 



Mr- Campbell believes that manuring the roots 

 will prove profitable. W. J. B . in the Kew 

 Built lin. 



The Month's Work. 



The Flower Garden. 



I5y John Whytock, Gardener to Colonel 

 Crawford. Cra w foidsburn. Co. Down. 





mild and 



work in 



forward. 



not 

 or 

 be 



The (lower garden presents at this 

 time of the yeai rather a cold and 



dismal appearance, very few plants 



or shrubs flowering out of doors at 



t his season, perhaps the most notable 

 being Jasminum nudiflorum, with 

 its golden-yellow Mowers, and the 

 Winter Sweet, with its delightful 

 fragrance. 



The present winter, as far as it 

 has eon,., has been very 

 open, so that outdoor 

 general should be well 

 excepting, perhaps, in districts where 



the soil is heavy and retentive. 

 Owing to the unusual heavy rainfall, 

 outdoor operations may have been 

 stopped, so that when weather and 

 soil permit any alterations that arc- 

 still to be carried out should be 



pushed on as quickly as possible. 



1 1 erb \< t'.i n - Borders. — II 

 already done, any renovating 

 li^, making of new holders should 



sn-w to at once. If any of the old 

 clumps have gol too big and growth 

 in the centre is weak, they should 

 be lifted and the stronger or outside 

 piece- broken off and replanted in 

 clumps of t hree pieces to the dump. 

 After any planting that is required 

 has been done, the holders should 

 receive a good mulching of well-rotted 



manure, or if procurable manure from a spent 



mushroom bed, which should be 



into the border, t a king care not 



roots too much. 



Rock and Aijine Plants. T 

 gone o\ er, and t hose t hat require 

 dressing of compost, according 

 require, as most Alpine plants are surface-rool ing, 

 ami the top-dressing, as well as being beneficial to 

 the plant, prevents the frost from getting at the 

 loots. Some of the more tender species, such as 

 the Androsace family, if exposed to too much 

 wet. should be covered with sheets of glass, so as 



to prevent the heads from damping, and such 



subjects as Gunneras, Romneya Coulteri, and 

 Eremurus should be protected with bracken or 

 other lighl covering to keep frost out. 



Trees \m> Shrubs. The planting of all 



deciduous trees anil shrubs should he carried out 



as -non as possible, also any pruning thai is 



forked deeply 



to dest roy t he 



hese should he 

 il given a top- 

 the plants 



required, ami i h 

 a good forking, 

 refuse, it could 



forked in. and w 



shrubberies gone over and given 

 f t here is pleni y i)f garden 



-plead over the holders and 



.1 he beneficial to the shrubs- 

 Roses. \m m-w plantations still to be carried 



out should bed 'at once. | f t he soil where t he\ 



are to he planted is he,i\\ and retentive, and 

 fresh loam cannot he procured . t he bed or border 

 should be deeplx trenched and some lumps of 

 Unslacked lime laid in the bottom of the trench. 

 This help- to loosen and warm the soil; a good 

 coating of well-rotted manure should be trenched 



