JODENAL OP HORTICULTUllfi AND COTTAGE GABDENfiE. 



[ April 25, 1872. 



Brazil, but it is also to be found iu Spanish America, where 

 it forms forests upon the banks of the Orinoco." — (Revue 

 Hortkoh:) 



WILD FLOWERS. 

 Saxdhcbst, H-iwKHrnsT, Kent. 

 I THANK " Mary Gold " much for her kind criticism, and 

 have gi-eat pleasure in sending a list of the wild flowers I have 

 gathered up to the 18th of April. 



Murcb 7. Common Meftdow Rufth (Luzula campestriy) 



Common Mouse-ear Chicirweed (CeraBtium Tulgntum) 

 Blajor Stitchwort (Stellaria Holostea) 

 ,, 8. Thyme-leaved Speedwell (Thymns serpyUifolia) 



Cornfield Stachys (Stachys arvensis) 

 „ 9. Common Coltsfolt (Tussilago Farlara) 



Ground Ivy (Glechoma hederacea) 

 „ 13. Golden Saxifrage (Clirysosplenium oppositifoUiun) 



GoldUotks (BanunculuB aurlcomus) 

 „ 14, Small "Wood Rush (Lnzula pUosa) 



Germander Speedwell (Veronica Chamjediys) 

 Grocers' Mustard (Simipis nigi-a) 

 „ 18. Mistletoe, male flowere (Viscum album), on Hawtliom and 



Sycamore 

 „ 19. Jack-by-the-Hedge (Alharia officinalis) 

 „ 23. Frog-wort (Ranunculus hederaceus) 

 Cow Parsley (Antbriscus sylvestris) 

 April 1. Blacktboi-n (Pi-unus spinosa) 



Early pm'ple Orchis (Orchis mascula) 

 „ 2. Wild Cberry (Cerasus arium) 

 „ 3. Common Ash (Fraxinus excelsior) 



Adder's-tongue Fern (Ophioglossiun \-ulgatum) 

 „ 7. Yellow Aveus (Geujn urbanum) 



Marsh Marigold iCalthapalnstris) 

 Herb Robert (Geranium Robertianum) 

 I%y-leaved Speedwell (Veronica bcdenefolia) 

 Hedge Vetch (V^icia sepium) 

 Common Plantain (Plantago lanceolata) 

 Red Currant (Ribes rubi-um) 

 Teesdale's Cress (Teesdalia nudicaulis) 

 Tbale Cress (Sisymbrium Thaliana) 

 Early Yellow Rocket (Barbarea prsecox) 

 Common Soirel (Rumex Acetosa) 

 „ 9. Yellow Dead Nettle (Galeobdolon luteum) 

 Wild Strawbeny (Fragaria vesca) 

 Red Robin (Lychnis dioica) 

 Bluebell (HyacinthuK non-scriptus) 

 ,, 12. Shepherd's Needle (Scandis Pecten- Veneris) 

 Broom (Spartium scoparium) 

 Common Bugle (Ajuga reptans) 

 Pale Sylvan Speedwell (Veronica montaua) 

 ■\Vhite Dead Nettle (Lamium album) 

 Hawthorn, May (Crataegus Osyacauthii) 

 „ 17. Lords and Ladies (Arum maculatum) 

 I have this time given the common names of my flowers, 

 and quite agree with '• Maey Gold " that they are preferable 

 for general readers, always providing the Latin names are 

 added — alone I think them useless. Last summer I assisted 

 a young botanist iu collecting and preserving wild flowers with 

 a view to her understanding at least the outlines of the natural 

 system. She was ehanned with the amusement of classing 

 exogens and endogens, when a friend gave her the Grass of 

 Parnassus. I could only explain that the English names were 

 of no use in the study of botany, as in many cases they only 

 tended to mislead the student. I should be charmed to ex- 

 change dried flowers with " Makv Gold." — Fkaclein, Botanist. 



OUR FIRST DISH OF UNFORCED ASPARAGUS. 

 The Asparagus beds at this place were made iu 1848. They 

 are on the Isle of Thanet sand, which contains a portion tif 

 alumina, and are still after an intciTal of tweiitv-tliree years as 

 productive as ever. I have during this period "aunualiy noted 

 the date of our first dish of Asparagus, which, as indicating the 

 forwardness or lateness of the season by the produce of a iLrrd 

 bed, IS not perhaps without some interest. From this retro- 

 spect we see that with one exception (1859), this year gave us 

 the earliest dish in the last twenty-three years. We had the 

 first dish in 



1853 May 15 



1854 April 17 



185S „ 22 



1856 „ 27 



1857 ,. 22 



1858 „ 28 



1859 9 



Api-U 21 



-CuTHBEET W. Johnson, Croydon. 



The Fashion of Weaeing Bciion-hole Bouquets came 

 hke most other fashions, from France. A young and veiy 



pretty gill conceived the idea of standing with a basket of 

 flowers on the steps of the Jockey Club, and presenting to 

 each member a single flower as he passed. The plan proved 

 eminently successful, and Mdlle. Isabelle became quite the 

 rage. From that time a flower in the button-hole became 

 quite an institution, and finally developed the button-hole 

 bouquet. 



NOTES OF A VISIT TO MESSRS. CARTER & CO.'S 

 SEED FARMS.— No. 2. 



Of Chrysanthemum cai'inatum, or tricolor as it is com- 

 monly called, there were several varieties, and though the 

 flower is a little coarse, and therefore objectionable in certain 

 positions, the colours are so gorgeous that in large beds and 

 borders it has a bi-Uliant effect. Venustum, about 1-5 inches 

 in height, crimson and white ; BuiTidge's ; and a large white 

 kind with an orange centre, may be especially noted. The 

 pretty little Nemesia compacta alba was producing a gi'eat pro- 

 fusion of flowers, and BO were Ceniaturbinata audflava,two use- 

 ful dwarf annuals, the former with white the latter with j'eUow 

 flowers. Larkspurs receive special attention, are grown very 

 extensively, and among them there was great diversity in habit 

 and colour. The beautiful blue Delphinium chinense had seve- 

 ral long rows to itself ; there were six colours of the Double 

 Branching, vei'y fine ; and the same number of Delphinium 

 Consolida candelabrum. The rich violet, Hlac, and rose 

 coloured varieties of this were remarkable for their fine hues 

 and free flowering in that peculiar candelabnun fashion from 

 which the race has taken its name. 



Lobehas collectively occupied a large extent of ground, and 

 the various kinds were singularly time to colour. Among them 

 was a veiy fine stock of the splendid blue Crystal Palace variety 

 of speciosa ; we noticed also a new vai-iety with the same habit, 

 but without the white eye of the former. Others were Blue 

 Kiug, sky blue ; Paxtoniana ; ramosa, not so compact in habit, 

 but larger-flowered ; and the white variety of the same species, 

 an excellent pure white. Among the Viscarias are to be found 

 some splendid free-flowering annuals ; cardinaUs, magenta, 

 was especially bi'illiant, finer in colour than the scarlet Linum, 

 and blooming much more profusely. V. elegans picta is an- 

 other very pretty variety, blush, with a purple Phlox-like eye. 

 V. oculata and its variety Dunnetti, the one pink and rose, the 

 other white, are also very desirable. Those beautiful and use- 

 ful annuals the Clarkias had mostly been harvested ; a few, 

 however, still remained, one of the best of them being C. in- 

 tegripetala margiuata, magenta distinctly edged with white. 

 There were also some very desii-able dwarf vai'ieties, but their 

 flowers were for the most part over. Whether tall or dwarf there 

 are few better annuals for the flower garden than the Claikias.; 

 elegant in character and distinct iu theh' colours, they are more 

 lasting than the beautifulmany-hued little Gilias and CoUiusias, 

 although no one who had gro^^'n them would willingly dispense 

 with these. Convolvulus minor unicauUs, with veiy large deep 

 violet-blue flowers, was one of the finest of the many varieties 

 gi'own, and Convolvulus major was also to be seen in various 

 colours, as violet, white, white-and-rose, blue, striped, &c. 

 Another Ipoma-a, I. Burridgii, was extremely sho\vj', the 

 flowers rich crimson, with a white throat. 



Of those pretty httle trailers the Abronias, there was A. 

 arenaria with yellow flowers, forming a good companion for 

 rockwork and small beds to the better-known A. umbellata. 

 Among Leptosiphons were some very pretty and dwarf white, 

 yellow, pink, and lilac varieties ; roseus was one of the best, 

 being very dwarf and free-flowering. Double Zinnias and 

 double Jacoba'as were unusually tine ; indeed the former have 

 of late become almost a florists' flower, and the advance which 

 has been made in " doubleuess," as exemphfiedin the varieties 

 grown at St. Osyth, was striking. The Double French Pj're- 

 thi-ums also now present a great diversity of showy flowers. 

 The well-known aud extremely useful Golden Feather Pyrethrum 

 was largely grown from seed, and very true in colour. 



To HoUyhocks both in mixtures and named varieties a large 

 space was devoted, and the former included some fine flowers, 

 while among the latter we noted such as Tyiian Prince ; Brox- 

 bom'ne Gem, deep crimson ; Mrs. McKenzie, dark rosy scarlet ; 

 Mrs. Ashley, cream yellow; and Celestial, blush. Pausies com- 

 prised good mixtures of fancy kmds of many shades, Cliveden 

 Blue and Cliveden Yellow, which had been in flower all the 

 summer, and a \eiy fine dark variety with a yellow eye, called 

 Beauty of St. Osyth. Another new kind. Dark Violet Blue, 

 promised to prove equally useful for bedding purposes. 



