124 



IRISH GARDENING 



always liave special cultures. The stock is thus 

 grown under the personal care of the owner, and 

 is not exposed to the neglect of incapable and 

 irresponsible employees. 



The very snudl places are held by workin<i 

 people, who are employed by the first or second- 

 named, and who devote the rest of their time to 

 their own business. They generally start with a 

 very small plot of ground, and work during the 

 mornings and evenings; later, they take an 

 occasional day off, and finally they possess their 

 own independent business. This system makes 

 the men industrious and intelligent. 



It is the soil which has given Boskoop its world- 

 wide reputation for the excellent quality of the 

 stock it produces. The very rich and good moor- 

 land, all peat, is an ideal soil for Ehododendrons. 

 Azaleas, Conifers, &c. The plants make an abvmd- 

 ance of fibrous roots, which form, after several 

 transplantings, a very strong ball, splendid for 

 exporting, and it is a well-known fact that plants 

 grown in Boskoop nurseries can travel round the 

 world without any injury to their quality. 



The nurseries in Boskoop are oblong and 

 narrow plots of ground, with one path in the 

 middle, and they are separated by numerous 

 canals and ditches. Long and narrow boats, poled 

 by one man, bring in all sorts of material neces- 

 sary in the nurseries, and in the time of export- 

 ing—in the autumn and early spring — they bring 

 the plants to the packing sheds, where they are 

 packed in big boxes for export to the United 

 States, Great Britain, and Scandinavia; and in 

 baskets or direct in railway waggons for export 

 to Germany, Switzerland, &c. 



It is impossible to make a list of all plants 

 .•jTOwn in Boskoop Nurseries; also, it is impos- 

 sible to describe the various methods of cultiva- 

 tion and propagation, as grafting, budding, &c., 

 which are sometimes only useful under local 

 circumstances. 



The most important specialities are Rhododen- 

 drons and Azaleas, both for outdoor planting and 

 forcing; Conifers, in fine variety; Boxwood, in all 

 shapes and forms; Hardy Climbers, such as 

 Clematis, Ampelopsis, Wistaria, Aristolochia, 

 &c. ; flowering shrubs in fine varieties, such as 

 Prunus, Magnolias; perennials, such as Paeonies, 

 Phlox, Dielytras, Delphiniums; pot-grown plants 

 for forcing, among which the Lilacs 'are well 

 known; and last, but not least, the Roses. 

 Several millions, bush as well as standards, are 

 exported every year from Boskoop. They are 

 budded on liosa ntgnan, and are very nsefid for 

 forcing. 



The great war, which destroyed the whole 

 world-trade, made the Boskoop Nurseries also 

 suffer very much by stopping export. But the 

 owners did not lo.se their energy, and the nurseries 

 have already begun to recover. 



Allotments 



HoRTicxJLTURAL Shows. — Quite a number of the 

 leading horticidtural societies have classes for 

 allotment holders in their annual exhibitions. 

 Opinions vary as to the advisability or not of 

 holding competitions for allotment holders. Why 

 competitions should not be encouraged for allot- 

 ments and yet are eminently satisfactory for every 

 other phase of life seems futile reasoning. It is 

 in the rural districts that competitions deserve 

 promotion. The countryside must necessarily 



liud its relaxations in topics related to its life, 

 having not the manifold attractions and diverse 

 auuisements of the city. One of the reasons 

 I)laced against competitions is the charge of dis- 

 honesty among competitors. Unfortunately, dis-' 

 honesty is by no means confined to allotment 

 holders, and simple rules carried out by the 

 promoters of shows can safegiuird this. Our 

 experience most decidedly favours the view that 

 competitions raise the standard of cultivation on 

 the plots. Very few allotment holders will see 

 neigldjouring plots distinctly better than their 

 own without receiving a stinudus to emulate 

 their more experienced neighl)ours. This idea is 

 spreading, in Great Britain especially, which is 

 now not only as stated reserving classes in ex- 

 hibitions for allotment holders, but has witnessed 

 a large increase in demonstration plots. Demon- 

 stration plots are not new to Ireland, in fact 

 there were a number of recent years; but the 

 system of working many of them was unsatisfac- 

 tory, and they have been discarded in some parts 

 of the country. 



Seed Sowing. — General remarks for sowing Cab- 

 bages were given last month, and the general crop 

 can be sown during the first week of the month. 

 Plotholders, who find that spring-sown Onions are 

 usually destroyed with maggots, should sow the 

 seeds in the autiunn. In Belfast, the general idea 

 is to sow Onions about the IGtli August. If the 

 seeds are sown before this date there is a danger 

 the plants will shoot or rrni to seed in the spring. 

 In any case, seeds of White Lisbon are sown for 

 producing Onions for use in the spring. If the 

 ground is made firm and the seeds well covered, 

 the yovuig plants will not be so liable to be lifted 

 out of the ground by frost in the winter. We 

 also sow a hardy variety of Lettuce in the 

 autumn, and plant them out in rows 1 foot apart 

 as soon as they are large enough. These plants 

 are ready much earlier than spring-sown seeds. 

 The variety known as W^inter Pearl is excellent, 

 and perfectly hardy. Sow the seeds about the 

 third week. Cauliflowers sown outside and allowed 

 to remain are somewhat risky in the North. Last 

 winter they came through very well. The seeds 

 are sown about the same time as Lettuces — 

 usually the third week. We find that the plants 

 stand the winter better when transi^lanted firmly 

 a few inches apart. If left in the seed-bed over- 

 crowded, they seem to melt away during bad 

 weather. Of course, if a frame is available the 

 difficultv is solved at once. No attempt should 

 be made to induce the Cauliflowers to develop 

 rapidly by closing the frames, but the plants 

 should be grown as hardy as possible, only placing 

 the lights over then! when it is absolutely neces- 

 sary. Seeds at this period of the year do better 

 when sown on ground that is freshly dug, and 

 moist. However, there is usually vacant land 

 occurring all the time now, as the Potatoes are 

 lifted. This ground, having been manured for 

 Potatoes, is now in excellent condition for seed- 

 sowing, and only requires levelling down and 

 raking. Another advantage is that, as some sort 

 of rotation of crops should be followed, this part 

 of the plot will not be required for Potatoes next 

 year, and can be filled with other crops There 

 will now be a considerable amount of waste 

 vegetable refuse on the plot. One of the easiest 

 means of getting rid of it is to dig it into vacant 

 land. Often there is a surplus, which cannot be 

 so easily disposed of, or time prevents this being 

 done. It is an excellent plan to have on the plot 

 a space for a rubl)ish heap. G. H. 0. 



