36 



GARDENING. 



Oct. i 5 , 



tions. It is extremely floriierous and 

 graceful in contour. The flowers are large 

 for the genus, double white, with the 

 outer side of the petals tinged with rose. 

 It is a worthy representative of this en- 

 terprising firm. W. C. Egan. 

 Chicago. 



SCORPION SENNA. 



(Coronilla Emerus.) 

 This is a little bushy shrub, three or 

 more feet high, a native of southern 

 Europe and hardy from Philadelphia 

 southward; at least it is hardy in warm, 

 sheltered places. Our illustration is en- 

 graved from a photograph of a little 

 sprig of it in bloom taken at Dosoris a 

 year ago last spring, and it shows better 

 than any other picture we ever saw of it 

 the true nature of the shrub and its manner 

 and profusion of blooming. The flowers 

 ate small, yellow, and on account of the 

 vast multitude of them quite pretty. As 

 a bush it makes a thick mass of small 

 branches with clover or pea-like leaves, 

 and the flowers are of pea form, and red- 

 dish, changing to yellow. Where it is 

 hardy, it should be grown freely; and 

 where it is only precariously hardy it is 

 worth protecting in winter. It is quite 

 cheap in nurseries and easily raised from 

 seed, division or sprouts. 



THE GAINESB GOLDEN ARBOR VITAE AT 

 DOSORIS. 



{Biota Orientalis aurea). 



Here is another of the inimitable 

 Dosoris pictures of garden trees, it shows 

 a perfect specimen of the golden Chinese 

 arbor vita; about nine feet high and over 

 seven feet through, unbroken and with- 

 out a blemish from the ground to the tip. 

 And still it is only one among a host ot 

 others of different genera and species in 

 the same group, and all equally perfect. 

 We mention this to show how easy it is, 

 with love and timely attention, to obtain 

 and preserve perfection in the health, 

 form, and development of fine trees, and 

 still maintain fullness and beauty in 

 grouping, and fine effect in planting. In 

 our picture a broad leaved hemlock at the 

 side and a pseudolarixatthe back appear 

 as if pressing up against the arbor vita;, 

 but they are not doing so; we would not 

 plant the arbor vita; within reaching dis- 

 tance of the pseudolarix.and the moment 

 the hemlock would touch it we would 

 shorten in the hemlock branches and 

 eventually cut it out 



Although the Chinese arbor vita;s are 

 quite hardy at Dosoris and New York, in 

 rigorous parts of the country they are 

 not so, but excellent substitutes for them 

 may be had in the finer golden forms of 

 the American arbor vitaes, which are very 

 hardy. This form of the Chinese arbor 

 vitae becomes very golden in early sum- 

 mer,but. curious enough, in fall it changes 

 from yellow to bronze brown, in spring 

 time again it reverts to its fresh yellow 

 hue. The same thing is noticeable in 

 some of our retinosporas, notably 

 ericoides and in Douglas' golden juniper. 



The Flower Garden. 



border both failed to grow, finally dying 

 outright. They were planted in ordinary 

 garden soil, receiving fair amount of sun- 

 shine and water. 



Lotus pelvorensis, probably pelio- 

 rhyncus, as given in Nicholson. The same 



FLOWER GARDEN NOTES. 



Parochetus communis (?), catalogued 

 as a novelty. Common name shamrock 

 pea. As Nicholson says this is a hand- 

 some flowering plant, I should like to 

 have some information as to growing it. 

 One plant in a tub and the other in open 



• Basella. (Malabar Nightshade). The 

 thick white and green leaves of this plant 

 make, as the catalogue says, a good con- 

 trast with the Aerva, if planted together. 

 It is of easy culture under ordinary condi- 

 tions. The flowers are very small and in- 

 conspicuous, 3*et after all, they are pretty 

 enough. They are arranged on a long 

 stem at the end of each branch, light 

 pink, but turning laterintoa little yellow 

 ball. 



Clematis paniculata, as everybody 

 knows, is magnificent, but what I want 

 to impress upon everybody is the fact 

 that it will flower almost as well facing 

 northeast as in a sunny exposure. This 

 clematis on my back porch, where it gets 

 the sun, is a solid sheet of bloom, while 

 on mv front porch, facing northeast, it 

 assumes a more delicate appearance, 

 although covering the whole front. I use 

 nothing except chicken meshing to train 

 it on 



Clematis Henrvi. A small root of this 

 planted in the spring gave one bloom 

 this month. I look forward with eager- 

 ness to next year, if this one flower is a 

 sample of what the vine will be when in 

 full bloom. Jackmanni is "not in ^'com- 

 pared with this enormous white flower of 

 seven petals. 



Helenium Autumnale (?). I ordered a 

 novelty called aureo-striatum, but I guess 

 I have autumnale. However, I am well 

 satisfied. Each single stem spreads out 

 to a large head, covered with hundreds 

 of clear yellow flowers. It seems to bean 

 economical plant, spreading at the roots. 

 Planted by accident close to two clumps 

 of Boltonia latisquama, it has com- 

 manded wide admiration. Has been in 

 perfect bloom since last of August. Grows 

 5 feet high, has strong stems and has 

 never had a trace of an insect on it. Of 

 very easv culture. L. C. L. Jordan. 



Bergen Point, N. J., September 26, '96. 



SCORPION senna. 



remarks as above apply to this. I have 

 been given to understand that it has 

 never bloomed in this country. The plant 

 is graceful and delicate, and would be 

 pretty even without the bloom, if it would 

 live. 



Aerva sanguinea. Another novelty, 

 not found in Nicholson, Is a low grow- 

 ing, half-trailing plant, with blood red 

 leaves, and useful for basket or vase, 

 ludging from the style of the inflorescence, 

 I should say it belonged to the Amaranth 

 family. [The generic name is JBrua or 

 .JZrva, and it belongs as you sugg st to 

 the Amarantus family. — Ed.] 



BULBS AND BULB PLANTING. 

 The bulb planting season is now upon 

 us, and we are busy with it. We grow a 

 large collection of these spring beauties, 

 for they are one of the most interesting 

 classes of plants to cultivate. To grow 

 them in pertection a well drained sandy 

 soil that has been enriched with old barn- 

 yard manure is the best, but any common 

 garden soil will do providing it is well 

 drained. The most of our bulb beds are 

 raised four to six inches above the level of 

 the walk; in this way the bulbs ripen off 

 nicely in spring without any lifting; we 

 let all our bulbs remain in the ground 

 over summer, and with this treatment 

 they do splendidly. Narcissus bulbs 

 planted four to five years and left undis- 

 turbed have increased wonderfully. A 

 number of varieties planted at that time, 

 six bulbs of each in a clump, gave last 

 spring 75 to 94- flowers to the clump. 

 We grow all our bulbs in clumps, the 

 smaller bulbs, such as scillas, grape hya- 

 cinths and the like, we grow in masses. 

 Each clump or mass is labelled, and when 

 it flowers we make notes of the best vari- 

 eties and also of the ones that do best 

 with us. All amateurs should grow a few 

 bulbs; they are easy to manage and sure 

 to flower. If the winter has not been too 

 hard how nice it is to go out in the gar- 

 den to some sheltered nook and pick a few 

 snowdrops while the snow is yet on the 

 ground. We did this last winter from the 

 14th of February till late in spring, and 

 they were more welcome than the choic- 

 est blossoms we had in the greenhouse. 

 When 1 say grow a few bulbs I do not 

 mean a few hyacinths or tulips; these 

 are seen evervwhere, but some of the other 



