IRISH GARDENING 



165 



Souv, de la Malmaison Carnations. 



It would be dit'licult to find a more appropriate 

 subject than this beautiful race of plants under 

 existing conditions ; fuel being almost unobtain- 

 able in most places, they succeed admirably 

 grown under cool conditions. Our plants were 

 grown entirely without artificial heat last year, 

 and produced large fleshy blooms of good sub- 

 stance, lasting a considerable time when cut for 

 room decoration. Natixrally the largest blooms 

 were those cut from young plants layei"ed the end 

 of July and potted on into 6-inch pots ; at the 

 same time those potted on the second year are 

 much more remunerative, producing seven or 

 eight blooms instead of one. 



There are a few most important items to be 

 considered in the cultivation of " Malmaisons " — 

 they are. soil, watering, and keeping the plants 

 free from insects, of which greenfly is the chief 

 enemy. Plants grown under clean healthy con- 

 ditions seldom suffer from the dreaded rusts. 

 Clean healthy plants should be selected for layer- 

 ing as soon as the flowering season is over. These 

 should be turned out of their pots and plunged in 

 a cold frame in a partly shaded jjosition : the 

 rooting niedium should consist of leaf-mould and 

 sand in equal portions, the former passed thi'ough 

 a quarter-inch sieve, and the whole made mode- 

 rately firm. Make a good, long, clean upward cut, 

 and fix firmly by the use of layering pins ; give a 

 thorough watering with the rose can ; close the 

 frame, and shade lightly from strong sunshine, 

 admitting air when necessary to keep the layers 

 fi'om getting drawn and weakly. New grov\th is 

 a sure indication of root action. When sufficient 

 roots are made sever the layers from the parent 

 plant a few days before potting. Clean 4-inch 

 pots should be prepared, and the soil should 

 consist of loam and leaf-mould in equal ]io)-ti()ns, 

 with a good portion of coarse 

 sand added. Pot firm and 

 place the plants back in the 

 cold frame again. Cive a 

 good watering and every 



encouragement to induce 



sturdy growth. Examine 



the young plants occasion- 

 ally, and when the pots are 



fairly filled with roots pre- 

 parations must be laade for 



the final potting. Pots 6 



inches in diameter, clean and 



well drained, should be got 



ready. Tlie compost to be 



used should consist of good 



rough fibrous loam, with 



tlie bulk of the fine particles 



taken away. Add about 



a 12-inch potfull of old spent 



mushroom bed. or, if un- 



()btaii:able, the iiame quan- 

 tity of leaf-iuould to the 



barrow full of loam ; a 10- 



incli ])()tfull of crushed 



(tysfer shell, also a similar 



quantity of powdered mortar 



rubble, then with a good 



dash of sand thoroughly 



mix. l*ot firm, using the 



rammer. When all are finish- 

 ed place the plants in a cool, 



airy house on an ash bottom. Pot on selected 

 one year old plants, and if necessary support the 

 shoots by a neat stake. Water carefully through 

 the winter months, avoiding the two extremes 

 of wet and dry, as either are very injurious. 

 Keep a careful watch for insects, and on all 

 favourable occasions a free current of fresh air is 

 most beneficial. When the plants are showing 

 flower a little Carnation manure pricked into the 

 soil, and soot water alternately, wull greatly 

 improve the quality of the blooms. Varieties are 

 numerous, but the general favourites grown in 

 quantity are Princess of Wales (pink) and Maggie 

 Hodgson (dark red). The accompanving photo 

 (see page 162) gives a good idea of " the value 

 of the former varietv. 



W. H. Green. 



Crinums. 



The species of Crinum have usually been regarded 

 as plants for indoor cultivation, indeed even for 

 warm house cultivation. The South African 

 C. loiiuiloliiim. far more generally known as 

 C. ca) iiisr. I.ioke the illusion some fifty years ago. 

 and siir\i\e(l several winters in the open air, in 

 fact proving to be perfectly hardy when suitablv 

 planted. The next species to be tried in the open 

 was C. Moorei, a plant which was introduced to 

 Glasnevin about 186.5, and in 1874 Sir Joseph 

 Hooker writes about it— :"And except the beauti- 

 ful C. capense, I know no other but this now in 

 open air cultivation." Tt had in fact then sur- 

 vived for five years planted in the open. In The 

 Garden for 5th August, 1882, there is a descriptive 

 notice of a new hardy Crinum, C. Pow^ellii. sent 

 out by ^Messrs. Henderson, of Maida Vale. This is 

 a hybrid, and in the notice above referred to the 

 parentage is incorrectly given as C. capense x C. 

 ornatum. It was in reality a cross between 

 C. capense and C. Moorei. and proved to be quite 



AsTlhBK (ilJANDIS (Sec |>. 1(1 



At the Ikish, Antrim. 



