IRISH GARDENING. 



J 79 



.and from the cliff tlie vieu of the sound or deep 

 chasm which separates the island from the main- 

 land was very grand. Going back on a brilUant 

 afternoon, two days later, the approach to the 

 island was a very lovely sight, a beautiful 

 sheltered bay wooded to the water. On the 

 island there is a large collection of rare shrubs 

 and trees similar to those which flourish in other 

 places in the district. Hydrangea acuminata 

 was in fine form, and in the height of the 

 Hydrangea season there must be a good show 

 here, as the varieties are numerous and doing 

 ^\■el.l. We specially 

 noted ths lug Vitis- 

 like chmber — Acti- 

 nidia chinensis, Poly- 

 gal a d a 1 m ai s i a n a , 

 Acer Hookeri, Em- 

 bothrium coccineum 

 still in flower, Pitto- 

 sporum Mayi (about 

 30 feet), Olearia jin- 

 signis, and a fine 

 clump of the brilUant 

 Erica cinerea coc- 

 cinea. 



Another afternoon 

 we walked six miles 

 to the Blaek\A'ater, a 

 well known beaaty 

 s]5ot between Ken - 

 mare and Parknasilla. 

 There once more we 

 ]H-oved Mr. BirrelFs 

 statement that " Ire- 

 land lives under the 

 microscope," for 

 another conscientious 

 constable, scenting 

 strangers, dismoun- 

 ted from his bicycle 

 with his ■' Beg par- 

 don, sir, would you 

 ))C staying with So- 

 and-8o ? " (naming a 

 local landed pro- 



prietoj) — a very Irish man^ too pohts to put his 

 official request for the cause of our presence in 

 more direct language. Curiously enough he did 

 not so much as glance at our uncouth parcel, 

 which contained the only " find "' we made — 

 namely, a very bright forni of the Scotch heather, 

 whose reddish pink colour caused it to stand 

 out prominently amongst a bunch of the ordi- 

 ary type. This was our second interview wilh 

 the R.I.C., ai-d was not so remarkable after all, 

 as, since the disturbances of April, the tourist 

 traffic is almost non-existent in the district and 

 most of the big hotels all but empty. Empty 

 hotels and the destruction wrought by the 

 storms of November, 191. "). were the rnlv 



l^KliGUI 



depressing experiences during the tri]3 

 Although Parknasilla is, of course, fairly well 

 known we can heartily recommend it 1o horti- 

 culturists who have not been there. They will 

 like a quiet spot far from the railway, and will 

 find much to interest them in «o beautiful a 

 place where only clegs are vile. J. M. W. 



Pergola at Ballinacor, Co, Wicklow, 

 The enclosed photo is of a pergola erected last 

 winter, and consists of 400 feet run of native oak 

 and 1,850 feet of 

 larch. The upright 

 posts are of oak, and 

 are sunk into' the 

 ground to a depth of 

 2| feet, and are 7 feet 

 above the ground, 

 which allows plenty 

 of room to walk imder 

 \\ithout stooping 

 when the climbers 

 cover the top. The 

 top consists of larch, 

 this being the most 

 suitable wood for the 

 purpose on account of 

 its straightness. 



The posts were 

 sunk in the ground 

 in the month of Sep- 

 tember 1915, this 

 being the best of the 

 autumn months for 

 such work, as then 

 there is no trouble in 

 makmg the posts firm 

 providing the soil is 

 on the dry side. 



The top was jiut 

 on during the winter 

 months, when ordi 

 nary garden opora- 

 tions could not be 

 proceeded with on 

 account of snow, heavy frost, or when the 

 condition, of the soil did not allow plant- 

 ing or treading on it. The followiuo- is a 

 list of climbers planted at the foot of the posts 

 on each side of the walk and alike in variety : — 

 Roses — Crimson Rambler. Alberic Barbier, 

 Dorothy Perkins, Excelsa, Hiawatha, ^Irs. M. H. 

 Walsh, Paul Transen, Wichuraiana alba. 

 Sander's White. Clematis Anderson Hcnryii, 

 Jackmanii, J. alba, Madame Edouard Andrp, 

 montana rubens, Lonic3ra punicea, Jasminum 

 niidiflorum, Mucklenbeckia complexa, Periploca 

 Graeca, Polygonum Baldschiianicum, Vitis coig- 

 neticie and Wistaria sinensis 



A. S. 



