5^° Journal of Agriculture. [lo Aug., 1908. 



should then be carefully spread and covered with fine soil, and the soil 

 firmly pressed or trodden around the ball as taken from the pot. The 

 most important point in regard to planting is that the plants must be 

 set out at the settled level of the surface. To plant too deeply is to 

 court failure. The soil should be kept in a moderately moist condition 

 at all seasons, and the plants shaded during the first summer, especially 

 if they have been grown in bush houses or frames in the nurser\ where 

 they were raised, the usual condition of their nursery culture. 



Palms are propagated from seeds. The seeds 'in many instances 

 require a long time to germinate and the young plants require frame 

 treatment and careful handling. Very few plants will be needed in an 

 ordinary garden and it is better to buy them from a reputable nursery- 

 man than to attempt to propagate and grow them to a size fit to plant 

 in the garden. 



Selection of Ivinds. 



Tracliycarpus excelsus, Chamoerops excelsa of most nurserymen, is 

 the hardiest of all. It attains a height of 15 or 20 feet and requires 

 about 12 feet of head room when fairly developed. This palm mav be 

 planted in any district in Victoria with a good prospect of success. It 

 is a fan leaved palm, and is suitable for pot culture. 



Chamuerops humilis is a dwarf hardy fan palm, suitable for small 

 gardens. It is not a good subject for pot culture. 



Washington filifera, syn. Brahea filamentosa, is most suitable for 

 planting in hot districts. It is one of the finest of the order, attaining 

 a height of 15 or 20 feet and a head spread of 15 feet when well grown^. 

 the leaves being large and fan shaped. 



Livistona australis is also a large palm of the same class, but is not 

 comparable with the last named kind as a hardv enduring plant. It 

 suffers greatly from hot dry winds, and requires a deal of shelter. 



Phcenix canaricnsis is a magnificent kind. Many plants in \arious 

 parts of Victoria have attained a height of 25 feet with a head spread 

 of 30 feet. The leaves are long, gracefully curved and plume like, the 

 plant fairly hardy and very vigorous. The common date palm, Plivenix 

 dactylifera, is easily raised from seeds and is very hardy. Other 

 species of Phcenix that thrive well about Melbourne are P. syivestris, 

 reclinata, spinosa, and rupicola, the latter teing the best species for pot 

 culture. 



Diplothemium maritinium and D. campcstre are splendid kinds 

 worthy of trial in any garden. The\ thrive in the coastal districts but 

 may fail in the interior. They attain a large size, specimens at Mel- 

 bourne Botanic Gardens being 15 feet in height and 20 feet across. 



Other palms that would probably require more shelter than those 

 mentioned, and are worthy of a place anywhere are : — Cocos, plumosa 

 and f-exuosa; Ptychosperma elegans; Areca Baueri and sapida and 

 Howe a {Kentia) Forsteriana and Belmorcana. 



Flower Garden. 



The work of digging, pruning, and planting deciduous subjects should 

 be completed as soon as possible, especially in districts where the weather 

 l:»ecomes dry and warm early in spring. Generally it is well to be some- 

 what ahead with such work, so that in the limice'd time usually devoted 

 to the flower garden certain necessary tasks can be completed in due 

 sea.son. Soil will need to be brought to a condition suitable for sowing 



