500 



JODENAL OF HOKTICDLTDEE AND COTTAGE GARDBNEB. 



L I>e<oab«r 19, 1866. 



are equally effective in tubs, whether as pyramids, bushes, or 

 stauiiarda, aud are far more suitable than Orange trees for 

 terraces. 



Standard Tews ore quite unique ; I do not know of anything 

 half so tractable as these. They look eqimlly well with square, 

 round, or pyramidal heads. Standard green and variegated 

 Hollies, on clean straight stems, cannot but be .idmired when 

 ojice Been, and they may have pyramidal or globular heads ac- 

 cording to taste. They bear cutting quite as well as Box, and 

 laay be kept so dose in growth as to resist small birds. Per- 

 haps there is no tree so much neglected as the Holly, nor one 

 that is capable of being cut into such beautiful forms. I 

 am no great advocate for catting trees much, but I am com- 

 pelled to own that untrained Hollies are the reverse of orna- 

 mental. Those in possession of thin ill-proportioned trees 

 will be well rewarded by cutting them in in May to the form 

 desired. The Weeping HoUy (Ilex pendula), on a stem from 

 ti to 9 feet in height, and its silver-variegated form, which is 

 also drooping, are handsome. Standard Box is the very reverse 

 of handsome, according to my ideas, though I can scarcely tell 

 why it should be so ; and this closes my list of standards, for 

 I omit those that have failed to impress me with their claims 

 to honourable mention. I have purposely avoided deciduous 

 shrubs ; but I may remark that few plants are finer as standards 

 than hardy Azaleas, Lilacs, aud Kibes. 



In geometrical gardens it is imperative to have the trees at 

 least in pairs, there being no individuality except in the centre, 

 which, of course, should be varied and distinct in itself. The 

 iaUer shrubs should not be placed there, but near the margin, yet 

 not so as to prevent the whole of the figure being seen at one 

 time from a given point of view, yet if this be done as a rule 

 the aspect presented will be equally monotonous as when they 

 are all graduated in height like plants rising in borders from 

 front to back. It is to do away with this monotony that shrubs 

 are introduced, at the same time they must not interfere with 

 the sj-mmetry of corresponding parts ; but when we plant shrubs 

 we must distribute them throughout on the principle of general 

 harmony. Symmetry requires that objects on one side be re- 

 peated on the other, the parts corresponding ; and the repetition 

 of various kinds of plants contributes vastly towards increasing 

 the apparent extent. The masses of shrubs and flowers, and 

 the isolated shrubs, though varied as to height, character of 

 foliage, and flower, must be allied together, so that neigh- 

 bouring masses may harmonise as dependant parts of the same 

 whole. Thus a geometrical garden should be a whole in respect 

 to outline, a whole in respect to the shrubs massed, or indivi- 

 dually repeated, and a whole whenever viewed — in winter with 

 the shrubs, and the regularity of their distribution and sym- 

 metrical forms, and in summer with the flowers. Thus if we 

 plant a tree in one comer we must repeat it in aU, and if we 

 Jaave a mass of flowering shrubs we must have another to 

 con-espond with it. 



I do not feel at liberty to introduce merely graceful plants 

 into geometrical gardens, but I may state that I have done so 

 with, I think, good effect. They should be employed, however, 

 somewhat sparingly, for they encroach on the symmetry of the 

 whole. Beds of Canna indica are fine, but unless sheltered 

 they are liable to be tossed about by the wind, and are then 

 anything but desirable. Wigandia caracasana, with its immense 

 foliage, stands out in noble reUef to gorgeous masses of bloom. 

 Arundo donax variegata is one of the very finest plants for the 

 centre of any garden, and for detached specimens ; Bambusa 

 metake also contributes to give elegance. Arando conspicua 

 will, I am convinced, be more extensively grown than the 

 Pampas Grass ; Guunera scabra is also effective. I must con- 

 dude with Aralia Sieboldi, a low shrub, clothed to the ground 

 with Fig-hke leaves of a glossy green ; it is nearly, if not quite, 

 liardy. The introduction of plants with ornamental foliage 

 into geometrical gardens requires to be carried out cautiously. 

 — G. Abbei. 



PLANTS FOR DINNER-TABLE DECORATION. 



Seeing in No. 245 an article on " Plants for Dinner-table 

 Decoration '' by Mr. Kobsou, to whom I, in common with your 

 readers, am much indebted for his excellent papers, I have 

 ventured, as he asks for hints, to draw his attention to a plant, 

 which, although at present almost unknown, is. in my opinion, 

 ■ome of the best flowers for the purjjose ; I allude to Lewisia 

 rediviva, or " Spat'lum," as it is commonly called by the North 

 American Indians and trappers, with whom it forms an impor- 

 tant article of food. The plant is a low succulent, of close 



habit, with leaves about 2 inches long, which have a peculiarly 

 beautiful appearance by candlelight, and flowers of a lovely 

 rose colour, about 3 inches in diameter, many being open on 

 the plant at the same time. It derives its name from the 

 marvellous tenacity of life which it displays. To kill it is 

 almost impossible, and I beheve the dried specimens in the 

 herbarium at Kew are, or were until very lately, constantly 

 throwing up new leaves, although many yeajs old. Even if 

 the roots are soaked in boiling water or spirits of wine they are 

 not materially injured. 



This flower I only saw twice used for dinner-table ornamenta- 

 tion, and the effect I shall not easUy forget — indeed, I never 

 saw before or since such a sight. It possesses the great merit 

 of looking exceedingly well by candlehght, and the blossoms 

 are not injured by being kept in a close, hot dining-room. It 

 may also be had in flower at any season. The root, which is 

 the part eaten, and which I have myself tasted, has a very 

 agreeable flavour, and as an esculent alone this plant deserves 

 extensive cultivation. 



May I also call Mr. Eobson's attention to the Egg-plant 

 for decorative purposes ? I have used a small variety at my 

 own table for ornament, and its appearance was always re- 

 marked upon. I usually grew two plants, one bearing white 

 and the other purple fruit, in one pot, and if carefully grown 

 and pinched in when young, they have a very handsome and 

 showy appearance. — J. H. 



METEOROLOGY OF FRUIT-TREE HOUSES. 



What in the name — well, of all the trees on earth, can the 

 even temperature of that mind-kOling place Mentone have to 

 do with orchard-house culture ? As far as my observations 

 have gone, such places as Mentone, Torquay, and Penzance, 

 where the winters are warm, and new Potatoes ready for the 

 market very early in spring, in short, in all chmates like parts 

 of Devonshire and Cornwall, with an even temperature and a 

 moist climate, good fruit but rarely ripens weU. 



To the question of " G. H." I reply, There is no danger to 

 trees in excess of temperature when their fruit is set if air is 

 admitted. This excess by gleams of sunshine in spring is so 

 transient, that the trees, less sensitive than the thermometer, 

 do not appear affected — at least, I have never found such to be 

 the case. What can I say more ? 



Without any mild discussion about " meteorologically fa- 

 voured places" (I begin to feel quite practically hardened), I 

 can in a few words tell " G. H." the advantage of a narrow 

 span-roofed house — mind, my width is 14 feet — over a wall. 

 Black Hamburgh Grapes will always ripen here in a house, 

 either lean-to or span-roofed. Against a wall, south, south- 

 west, or south-east, they ripen about once in five years ; so 

 that " G. H.," with his wall-losing propensities would have, if 

 he lived here, sour Grapes for four years, which would, doubt- 

 less, add to the enjoyment of the ripe ones in the fifth. I know 

 that I ought not to treat this matter lightly, and yet one feels 

 so strong in the power of glass over walls, that when it is 

 questioned one cannot possibly think the questioner serious. 



1 feel so with "G. H. ;" he seems to me to be pleasantly 

 " chafling" in all he says, and I daresay smiles and says, after 

 writing a paragraph, '■ Wo'n't this draw the old fellow out ! " 



With respect to the temperature of hedge-houses, I am glad 

 to have the opportunity of explaining why in my book — I 

 am sure that my enemy is not glad that I have written one, I 

 am — I have given a high degree, for the temperature of such 

 stractures vai'ies to a great extent. 



The first hedge-house of the Idnd that I erected was put np 

 about twelve years ago, and was span-roofed, 18 feet wide, over 

 two Yew hedges of thirty years growth, and very dense, being 



2 feet thick. These hedges form its side walls, 2 J feet in height. 

 This house stands endwise north-west aud south-cast ; parallel 

 to it on its north-east side is another house, which, of cotirse, 

 shelters it from north-east, and east winds. Well, from taking 

 the temperature of this hedge-house 5 feet from the ground in 

 its centre, I found it very warm, averaging from 15° to 20° 

 above the open air. It is still one of my warmest houses, 

 although a hedge-house. The house I referred to in my last 

 as being remarliable for its retarding qualities, is of a very dif- 

 ferent build. One is so used to variation here in the structure 

 of houses that trifles are forgotten. The houses, one of which I 

 referred to, are lean-to's, with Beech hedges 8 feet high for 

 back walls, and four-feet hedges for front walls. The Peach trees 

 I mentioned are planted in the borders, on a level with the 



