IRISH GARDENING 



VOLUME XIV 



No. 156 



Editor J- W. Besant 



A MONTHLY JOURNAL DEVOTED TO THE 



ADVANCEMENT OF HORTICULTURE AND 



ARBORICULTURE IN IRELAND 



FEBRUARY 

 1919 



Hardy Herbaceous Plants* 



'ITH the advent of Februarv 

 it will be necessary to give 

 attention to herbaceous 

 plants, where this work 

 was not attended to in 

 autumn. In some soils 

 the work of lifting and dividing is better 

 done in spring, in heavy, damp soils, for 

 instance. In such soils the plants usually 

 flourish and grow strong and continue growing 

 late in autumn ; but heavy soils are difficult to 

 work after the autumn rains, and soon get cold. 

 To lift and divide plants in late autumn or early 

 winter and replant them in cold soil is not ad- 

 visable, as many of the roots perish ere new 

 growth begins in spring. Where the soil is 

 porous and well drained, autumn planting is 

 preferable, as most herbaceous plants make 

 fresh roots in autumn, and these have time to 

 get hold of the soil ere it becomes too cold, and 

 are in a nuich better state to begin work in 

 spring. 



Spring planting, however, has advantages, 

 but should not be delayed too long, otherwise 

 the drying winds of jNIarch will prove severe on 

 newly-planted stuff. 



Since the first 3'ear of the war tender plants 

 have fallen into disfavour owing to the amount 

 of labour involved in their production, and it 

 is possible that it may be some time before they 

 are again cultivated to the same extent, if ever 

 they are. 



Every year people are realising more and 

 more that hardy perennials, hardy annuals and 

 annuals, which can be raised with no other pro- 

 tection than a cold frame, give even niore satis- 

 faction than tender exotics out of doors. More- 

 over, herbaceous plants are now so numerous 

 that kinds to suit every garden may be found 

 without difiiculty. For the large garden all are 

 available, for the small garden the dwarfer 

 kinds may be selected, and for economy they 

 may be limited to those that not only look well 

 in the garden, but may also be cut for the deco- 

 ration of the rooms. The low growing, trailinu' 



kinds may be used as edgings to walks, and are 

 particularly useful where the line between path 

 and border is of stones. In a large garden, well- 

 mown grass makes a beautifid setting for her- 

 baceous plants, but it involves a good deal of 

 labour in mowing, and it is essential to keep 

 down unnecessary labour as far as possible. 

 Stones are effective in holding back the soil, and 

 cease to be unsightly when clothed with trail- 

 ing plants and others of low growing habit. It 

 must not be thought that hardy herbaceous 

 plants will grow successfully without proper 

 attention to the preparation of the soil. 



Most people, however little they know of 

 gardening, are ready to allow that digging and 

 manuring are absolutely necessary to grow good 

 Potatoes and Cabbages. The same may be said 

 for herbaceous plants, and with greater force, for 

 while the l*otatoes and Cabbages are but a few 

 months in the soil, the herbaceous plants are 

 required to remain on dut}^ for years; hence the 

 need for thorough preparation at the outset. 



If a new border is being planted or an old one 

 wholly replanted, trench the soil at least two 

 feet deep, placing at the bottom of the trench 

 any rubbish of leaves and any other garden 

 residue available; but good manure, if at hafd, 

 should be kept under the top spit, say about 

 twelve inches below the surface. Some may 

 say that it is all very well to talk about manure 

 for flowers, but there is little of it nowadays. 

 What there is we want for vegetables and fruit. 



If manure is not procurable for flowers, deep 

 cultivation of the soil before planting and con- 

 stant surface cultivation with the hoe after- 

 wards will do a good deal to ensure a display, 

 but it is just as well to recognise the fact that 

 without occasional manuring the best results 

 will not be maint^ained year after year. We 

 may take it foi**granted, however, that those 

 who determine to grow hardy plants will find 

 wavs and means of kee2:)ing their treasures in 

 health. 



As mentioned above, there is an abundant 

 choice of matei'ial, and the owner of a large 



