t8 97 . 



GARDENING. 



299 



male and female locks and stones. The 

 main torrent of a waterfall is masculine, 

 the lower one feminine. The application 

 of sex to stones is only used when placed 

 in pairs, when the one possessing the 

 more vigorous outlines will be considered 

 masculine, the other feminine. Where a 

 flowering tree is used in decoration with 

 a plant, the tree is the male and the plant 

 the female. With flowers proper the buds 

 are feminine and the full flowers mascu- 

 line, while overblown flowers again are 

 considered feminine. Red, purple, pink 

 and variegated colors are male, and blue, 

 vellow and white, female. The front sur- 

 face of a leaf is male and the under sur- 

 face female. This same principle is applied 

 to the direction of the stems in the com- 

 position of a bouquet, the right hand 

 side and the front being male and the left 

 hand and further side, female. 



There is also a color rank among the 

 flowers. Generally a white flower of any 

 species takes highest rank. In chrysan- 

 themums the v - ellow takes precedence; in 

 peach blossoms, the pale pink; in the iris, 

 the purple; in camellias, red; wistar as, 

 lavender; paeonies, red, etc. 



There are seven or more different schools 

 or st5 r les of flower arrangements, al- 

 though one main principle governs them 

 all. 



ROBERT DOUGLAS. 



All lovers of the evergreens will regret 

 to hear of the death of the veteran nur- 

 seryman Robert Douglas at his home in 

 Waukegan, 111., on June 1. He was the 

 pioneer of western nurserymen and one of 

 the first to raise evergreens successfully 

 Irom seed. To his efforts are we indebted 

 for the beautiful Colorado blue spruce, 

 Douglas' golden arbor-vita?, Douglas' 

 pyramidal arbor-vita; and the charming 

 golden spreading juniper. He was a lover 

 of nature and her most ardent student. On 

 the hints she gave him he based his prac- 

 tice, and thus was successful. 



He loved the woods and the open air 

 and his cheery ruddy face gave full evi- 

 dence of an outdoor life. His liking for 

 the freedom of a natural mode of life, un- 

 trammelled by conventionalities, was 

 well illustrated during a visit to the 

 writer last summer. He had been enter- 

 tained by being taken to all the attractive 

 places in the neighborhood, one of which 

 contained a handsome Grecian loggia 

 overlooking the lake. This was glisten- 

 inglv painted in steamer white and was 

 faultless in its immaculateness. He 

 merely remarked to the owner that the 

 view was fine. Later in the day he came 

 to a rustic arbor almost hidden ina grove 

 of trees. Leaning back in the seat and 

 stretching out his legs along the dirt 

 floor, he exclaimed, "This is fine! Don't 

 you know I like this better than that 

 painted thing I felt in it as if I ought to 

 have had my boots blacked." That 

 remark was not because he was slovenly 

 in his habits, for he was not, but was his 

 way of expressing his love for the perfect 

 freedom his out door life had engendered. 



The trees of the woods and gardens 

 were his children. He knew them all and 

 loved them all. When taking him to the 

 depot at the close of the day of his visit 

 he suddenly turned round and said "I 

 have enjoyed this day so much" — then 

 pausing a moment as if dating back his 

 thoughts, he added, "Oh! how I have 

 suffered sometimes for some one to talk 

 trees to!" 



Settling in Waukegan in 184:4 he at 

 once embarked in the nursery business 

 continuing it until the present time. 

 While seated in his office writing letters 



death came silently and beckoned him 

 awav. Mr. Douglas was in his eightv- 

 fifthyear. W. C. Egan." 



The Greenhouse. 



A VARIED COLLECTION. 



From E. 0. N., Tennessee, comes the 

 query: "Please let me know the proper 

 treatment of below plants in summer. 

 They are now in my greenhouse. Shall 

 I plant them out or plunge the pots out- 

 side? How about exposure to sun, and 

 watering?" 



Several of the plants named in the list 

 are strangers to me. Of those I do know, 

 the following treatment will be found all 

 right. 



Lantana. — This in its native clime is an 

 evergreen shrub. With us it is a green- 

 house plant and a very desirable summer 

 plant for the mixed border. You can 

 plant them out, or if you wish to savethe 

 old plants, pot into a liberal size pot and 

 plunge out of doors in the broad sun. It 

 propagates from the young tender 

 growths 



Cassia floribunda.— Plant out in open 

 ground. It is a tropical plant and would 

 thrive best in a sunny but sheltered place. 



Plumbago, red white and blue. — These 

 can be kept in the greenhouse all summer 

 and shaded, but what is better, plunge 

 the pots out of doors during June, July 

 and August. 



Mvrtle (Myrtus communis).— This 

 handsome shrub is hardy in the south of 

 Europe but far from it here or in Tennes- 

 see. Plunge out of doors, or it can be 

 planted out and lifted, and don't be afraid 

 to pinch or prune into desired shape. Full 

 sunlight will suit it. 



Cereis. — Plant in the most sunny 

 place; they will lift easily. 



Phyllocactis— Plant out; any cactus 

 will lift readilj'. A rather sandy soil or 

 light loam is best. 



Justicea.— Plant out and lift in fall. 

 This plant is scarelv worth room in a 

 greenhouse, but is easily propagated from 

 growth in the spring. 



SOLANUM JASMINOIDES GRAND1FLORUM, 



S. j. Rantonettii and S. azureum. — As 

 there is said to be 900 species in this 

 genus it is impossible to know all of them 

 or one quarter of them We all know 

 Solatium tuberosum, and many florists 

 know S. jasminoides grandiflorum 

 Plant out in a warm sunny spot. You 

 can lift in the fall by cutting back hard, 

 or you can put in cuttings late in the fall 

 which root readily from most of the ever- 

 green solanums. Wji. Scott. 



SPIRAEAS AND RASPBERRIES. 



The following comes from "T. T.": 

 "What are the best three or four varie- 

 ties of spiraeas for forcing by an amateur? 

 How early can they be successfully 

 brought into heat? Will they force the 

 second season and are the roots hardy? 



"What causes the new growth canes of 

 my black cap raspberries to suddenly wilt 

 and die when 6 to 18 inches high? Many 

 canes have acted this way with me for 

 past three seasons." 



More than likely "T. T." refers to the 

 herbaceous spiraeas and particularly to 

 that well known and useful plant widely 

 known as Spirsea japonica, the correct 

 name of which is Astilbe japonica, there 

 is a botanical difference between it and 

 the true spiraeas. 



Astilbe Thunbergii, classed as a sub- 

 shrub, forces finely and is used very largely 

 for that purpose in Europe. If space 

 were of no account and variety was, 

 many of the shrubby spiraeas make a 

 handsome decoration for the conserva- 

 tor},-; Bumalda and prunifolia are espe- 

 cially good for this purpose. Of the her- 

 baceous spiraeas for forcing the best are 

 palmata, of which there is red, whiteand 

 rose;- venusta, pink; astilboides, white; 

 and aruncus, white. Besides the popular 

 forcing Astilbe japonica there is its varie- 

 ties with the variegated foliage and a 

 good variety called compacts, with which 

 I am much pleased this spring although 

 it wants about three weeks more time in 

 the greenhouse than the old japonica. 



The time that the herbaceous spiraeas 

 will require to bring them in flower will 

 of course depend on the heat you give 

 them, and they are better brought along 

 slowly at first; from ten to twelve weeks 

 will be about right for the winter months. 

 Like all plants that are used for forcing, 

 as their natural time of flowering ap- 

 proaches the less time need they be in the 

 greenhouse. 



The shrubby spiraeas are among our 

 hardiest shrubs and the herbaceous spe- 

 cies, as well as the astilbes, are as hardy 

 as a pie plant. If not too severely forced, 

 and allowed to properly ripen their foli- 

 age after flowering, they can be forced 

 year after year, as I have seen them 

 treated 4-0 years ago, but for the com- 

 mercial man it pays at the very low cost 

 of the roots to buy every year. 



Wm. Scott. 



[The question about raspberries can 

 not be intelligently answered without a 

 specimen of the affected canes.] 



PROPAGATION OF GASTER1A AND flA- 

 WORTHIA. 



I have a gasteria, variety unknown, 

 but it is the one with the white bosses on 

 the leaves. About three months since I 

 found a broken-off leaf lying on the sur- 

 face of the pot with what looked like a 

 root projecting from it; I potted it off, 

 and it remains in just the condition now 

 that it was in when potted, neither ad- 

 vanced nor receded. Does this plant 

 emit roots from severed ends of leaves? 



And how is haworthia propagated? I 

 have not been able to strike its leaves, 

 the stems seem too large for cuttings, and 

 it never seeds. It is so much superior to 

 gasteria as an ornament that I wish I 

 could propagate it. W. W. 



Oakmont, Pa. 



The gasteria described is no doubt 

 maculata. If the severed leaf had been 

 broken off near the stem, possibly it would 

 have thrown out roots. If propagation 

 is desired remove the centre of the plant, 

 which can be rooted, and side shoots will 

 be thrown out which will root readily. 



Haworthia is increased by suckers, 

 which in a good sized plant arefrequentlv 

 produced. Wm. Scott. ' 



Roses. 



ROSES. 



The roses are now beginning to flower, 

 but it will be a week before there is much 

 of a show. The first one to flower was 

 the Dawson rose. This is a vigorous 

 growing rose, producing showy panicles 

 of semi-double, deep pink, fragrant flow- 



