January 1, 1867. ] 



JOUBNAL OP HOKTICDLTUBE AND COTTAGE GARDENEB. 



WEEKLY CALENDAR. 



Day 



of 



Month 



Day 



of 

 Week. 



Tn 

 W 



Th 



F 



S 



SnN 



M 



JANUARY 1—7, 1867. 



ClECCMCISION. 



Myoporum parvifolioizt* 

 Oralis marginata. 

 Osalis sansuinea. 

 Oxalis variabilis. 

 Epiphany. Twelfth Day. 

 Pittosporum tobira. 



Average Temperature 

 near London. 



Day. 

 43.3 



42.4 

 48.0 

 42.6 

 41.8 

 41.0 

 41.6 



Night. 

 80.9 

 29.5 

 30.6 

 31.3 

 SO.O 

 28.8 

 28.6 



Mean. 

 87.1 

 85.9 

 36.8 

 86.9 

 85.9 

 84.9 

 S5.1 



Rain in 



last 

 J9 yeara. 



Daya. 

 12 

 16 

 19 

 16 

 14 

 IS 

 14 



Son 



Rises. 



m. h. 



9af8 



9 8 



8 8 



8 8 



8 8 



8 8 



Snn 



Sets. 



Moon 

 Rises. 



m. h. m. h. 

 69af3 j 83afS 



83 

 SO 

 24 

 12 

 55 

 32 



Moon 

 Sets. 



m. h. 

 23afl 



56 1 



33 2 



17 3 



7 4 



8 5 

 8 6 



Moon's 

 Age, 



Days. 

 25 

 26 

 27 



1 



Clock 



before 



Snn. 



m. 8. 



8 44 



4 12 



4 41) 



5 8 



5 So 



6 2 

 6 28 



Day 



of 



Year. 



From observations taken near London daring the last forty years, the average day temperature of the week is 42.2' ; and its nighl 

 temperature 29.9^. The greatest beat was 57% on the 3rd, 1860; and the lowest cold 4\ on the 2nd, 1854. The greatest fall of rain was 

 0.86 inch. N.B. — The Calendar contains the names of plants flowering in the greenhouse. 



LIBRARY 



<EW YORl 



iJOTANlCA 



GARDEN. 



THE PAMPAS GRASS. 



T is somewhat remarkable 

 that so little has been said 

 about tliis very beautiful 

 plant, wliich at the present 

 time shows itself so con- 

 spiouousl}- in most situa- 

 tions in the south of England. Is it thought not to be 

 hardy enough to withstand severe ranters, or has the 

 novelty which it possessed when it was first introduced 

 died away ? Its beauty cannot be said to have done so, 

 for nothing can be really more attractive than some of the 

 specimens on which upwards of a himdred plum}' spikes 

 testify to the profuseness of its blooming, while its grace- 

 fulness as a plant entitles it to a place where its blooming 

 is even more uncertain than in some favoured localities. 

 Certain it is that the Pampas Grass is less grown than it 

 ought to be. Many places of considerable size contain only 

 a single specimen. As it is not over-nice in regard to situa- 

 tion it is deserving of being planted more largely than it has 

 been. Except in one or two cases it has not as yet perfected 

 seeds in tliis country, and therefore, as it does not naturally 

 increase itself here by selfsown seeds, suckers, or layers, it 

 must be propagated by other means. Fortunately these 

 means are not difficult, and if there were a demand, young 

 plants could be had in any quantity. I will now offer a few 

 notes on the culture of this most beautiful of all autmun- 

 flowering plants. 



However objectionable some situations may be to the 

 plant, certainly the character of the soil makes little dif- 

 ference to it. I have seen it thriving well on a dry rocky 

 hill, and equally at home by the side of a pond or ditch ; 

 and the description of soil seems, indeed, to have less effect 

 than the presence or absence of moisture, for I have seen 

 it flon-ering in the greatest perfection on the black peaty 

 soUs of Bagshot, and here a plant is doing pretty weU on 

 the stifl'est of clays. I think that it always requires sun- 

 shine to do well, and very probably it will succeed best 

 where there is sufficient moistm-e without stagnation, for 

 the best plant which I ever saw was gron-ing by the side of 

 a piece of ornamental water in the garden of J. Holling- 

 worth, Esq., near Maidstone. This plant about three 

 years ago had upwards of 120 spikes of bloom upon it, and 

 I believe that number has smce been much exceeded. The 

 soil rested on Kentish rag, or what in other places would 

 be called limestone. Other plants at the same place, grow- 

 ing in various positions, were also flowering well : but I 

 believe that the whole had the advantage of sunshine at 

 all times. 



Free-blooming as the Pampas Grass is, there are times 

 when its non-flowermg is cUfficult to account for. Many 

 years ago I planted one out iu a dell amongst slurubs, the 

 Ko, SOI.— T«b XII.. Msw Ssures. 



situation was moist rather than dry, and the plant grew and 

 flowered for a few years, and I beHove was amongst the 

 first that did flower out of doors ; each succeeding j'ear 

 added to the niunber of its spikes untQ in the bright warm 

 summer of Is.jij there was a blank — no flower, although 

 the plant gi'ew as fast as before, and seemed all right. 

 Unwilling to remove a plant that was favourably situated, 

 it remained tliroughout the next year, during which compa- 

 ratively few plants of this species flowered, a ckcumstance 

 which seemed attributable to the dull wet character of the 

 smnmer. The severe \\dnter which followed killed many 

 plants of Pampas Grass in difl'erent parts of the country, 

 and did not leave tliis one entirely unscathed ; its non- 

 flowering in li^Ol was therefore excused. The plant re- 

 covering its former \'igour, half a dozen blooms were pro- 

 duced in 1862, which, being less than it had fm'nished in 

 1858, was anything but cheering ; and in 1sm;5 and ISfil it 

 was altogether destitute of flowers. This, of course, led to 

 the plant being condemned, and ha'\"ing been taken up in 

 the spring of 180.5 it was di\ided into a number of small 

 plants, some of which promise to do well, one or two being 

 in flower at the present time. Now, how is the plant's 

 not flowering in seasons, when other specimens (Ud so 

 to be accounted for '.' The situation, I have no doubt, 

 exerted a considerable influence, for some trees and shrubs 

 grew up and partially shaded the plant, and though it 

 continued to grow no flower-stems were produced. In 

 some situations a gi'eater number of flower-spikes ■nill 

 be found on a plant of a given size than on another 

 cUfl'erently placed. We have here one or two specimens 

 which seem as large as that referred to as having had up- 

 wards of 120 spikes of bloom upon it, 3-et we have never at 

 tliis place reached half that number. The plants here are 

 mostly growing on a dry stony soU. I believe the Pampas 

 Grass sufl'ers much fi-om the roots of trees encroaching on 

 it, and possibly tliis assisted the other cause in preventing 

 the specimen in question flowering. It is certain that the 

 Pampas Grass prefers being alone to contendmg ■n-ith 

 other plants for the occupation of an allotted space of 

 gi'oimd : and it is equally true that it looks best when in 

 such a position, for few plants can equal and stiU fewer 

 excel it for symmetry of growth and a uniformly good 

 appearance on aU sides : it therefore deserves an open 

 position, so as to exhibit its beauties to the greatest ad- 

 vantage. 



Independently of its dislike to shade, or rather conten- 

 tion •svith other plants for support from the gi-ound wliich 

 it occupies, I believe that the Pampas Grass flowers more 

 or less freely according to the varieties that are grown ; 

 for there are certainly diflerent shades of colour, and pos- 

 sibly some varieties may be earlier than others. A some- 

 what dark-colom-ed one is often regarded as the earhest, 

 though it is by no means the prettiest : the narrow-leaved 

 plants also often furnish bloom earlier than the broad- 

 leaved— that is, small plants begin to flower sooner ; this 

 is a consideration, for at best the Pampas Grass is not 

 the quickest of plants to come into blooming, and some 

 have to wait three or four years ere they have any bloom 

 worth mentioning. Neither is it the best in the %vorld 'o 

 No. 96?.— Vol. XXXVU., Old Sekies. 



