28 



IRISH GARDENING 



Hardy 



l!\ M. 



Annuals. 



( la >SB1 R. 



It is a pity thai one finds i1 necessarj to repeal 

 again and again the same question " Why arc 

 hardy annuals nol well-grown in everj garden ? 

 for, as a rule with the exception of Sweel Pea), 

 they are either badly treated or else nol grown 

 a1 all. There is no reason for this, because no 

 plants give a quicker <>r more liberal return for a 

 little care and attention. The general idea si '-in- 

 to In- thai annuals are such a shorl time in 

 hldoin thai ii is qo1 worth while taking any 

 trouble over them, but, .1- a matter <>!' fact, 

 numbers of the besl remain in bloom for eighl 

 or nine week- for instance, Larkspurs, Lupins. 

 .Mallow-. Mignonette, Nasturtiums, &c, <V< .. to 

 mention only a few. The Larkspurs, mosl 

 beautiful either lor garden or house decoration, 



will, if sown in 



t In- aul limn, grow 

 i o a heighl of five 

 feel . and begin I o 

 I. loom early in 

 .Inly, lasting till 

 i- ii t by frost, 

 usually at i he 

 end of ( let ober. 



There « 

 magnificenl dis- 

 play ot annuals 



at tin' -how at 



( Ihelsea lasl May : 



it niii-1 ha \ e been 



an ej e-opener t o 

 many, being a 

 very si riking de- 



monsl I at ion hot h 



of t he diversil 5 

 in colour, shape 



anil hahit ami of 



the splendid 



effei t to be gol 



from t hem. W ell 



grown bush} 



plants wer e 



shown singly, 



each covered with blossom from the base up, so 



differenl from tin- weed; starved specimens 



usual 1 j to be seen in gardens. 



With a few exceptions hard] annuals do no! 

 make good subjects for beds cu1 in grass. They 

 -how to besl advantage either bj themselves in 

 a border which has a good background, or else 

 boldly grouped in a mixed border. They are 

 verj useful too for making patches of colour in 

 the front of shrub beds and borders. Thej seem 

 to require the 9ubstance and background given 

 then i bj perennial plant- to -how their vivid 

 colourings t o perfeel ion, as t hej t hemseh i 



s -what deficient in foliage, and anj the) have 



i- hidden l>\ the profusion of flowers. In everj 

 garden, however small, some odd piece of ground 

 will be found, where perhaps spring bulbs have 

 been, thai could be made gaj for the summer with 

 a good clump of Shirlej Poppies or Marigolds. 

 In t he border t hej come in al a i ime \\ hen i1 

 rather lack- brightness, when the i'u-t glory of 

 the summer flowers is passed and before anj ol 

 the autumn ones have taken their place ; and a1 

 a time when yellow is the prevailing colour in 

 herbaceous plant -. t heir brillianl reds and pink 

 help to preserve the balance in the scheme of 

 colour. 



I'hotu by 



Thej are mosl unexacting in their requirements, 

 ordinarj well-worked garden soil, with the addi- 

 tion of some old manure before sowing or planting, 

 suiting them admirably. Thej like an open 

 position with plenty of sunshine. Hut usually 

 n i- i, cither the soil nor situation that cause- the 

 failure, hut want of room : lii .. they are sown 

 much too thickly, then not sufficiently thinned. 

 Remember thai they are no better able to 

 struggle with one another foi existence than any 

 other cultivated plants, and from the time they 

 germinate give each seedling plenty of room to 

 develop. 



If possible ii is much better to sow them in 

 the autumn, hut the usual met hod is to sow them 

 in ticir flowering quarters in the spring. In this 

 case have the -round turned up roughly during 

 the winter, and before sowing dig in some well- 

 rotted manure, make the surface soil as line as 

 possible, and choose a dry day for sowing. \\ hen 



i hey are up, t hin 

 rigorously, and 



kec| > a gOOd look 



i ml for slim- and 

 snails. &c. Then, 

 later on, water- 

 ing and staking 

 mii-t be attended 

 to. Owing to the 

 rapidity wit h 

 which t hey grow 

 and to their lack 

 of any reserve 



i I supply, thej 



well repay for 

 plenty of feed- 

 ing. Very often, 

 when they have 

 once been sown 

 and have flow- 

 ered in a hol- 

 der, self - sown 

 seedlings will be 

 found the next 

 spring, and t hesc 

 natural autumn 

 s o w n seedlings 

 make stronger, 



healthier plants than anj hand sown one-. 



If. as it often happens, thej c • up where thej 



cannot be left to blossom ; lift carefullj when 

 the ground is moist, and plant wherever you 



want I hem to hi • This can be safely done 



with all of them except the Poppy family, which 

 is always very impatient of any transplanting. 



in -i ■ favoured spots it will be found quite 



Eactorj to sow in seed beds oul of doors in 

 September, and where this can be done the little 

 plant- have onlj to be transferred from there to 

 their flowering quarters in the spring. Another 

 method, and the one the mosl strongly to be 

 recommended as giving by far the besl results 



ami being the si satisfactorj in every way. 



i- to sow in November in boxes in cold frames. 

 Choose an open sunnj position for the frame, and 

 give plenty of air ever j fine day, and onlj in very 

 severe frosl will they require a mat over the 

 fra me. 



Winn thej are large enough to handle early 

 in February, prick them off into boxes keep close 

 in the frame for a few days until thej have 

 recovered the move, and after thai the lighl may 

 be taken completelj off every fine day, as it is 

 mosl important that the seedlings should nol get 



draw n. 





