CARNATION IN THE GARDEN 9 



some of our exhibitors would find the quality of their 

 blooms enhanced were they allowed to hang down in 

 this way, and no one who has visited Spain in late 

 spring will deny the beauty of this mode of growth. 

 Carnations are found growing wild on crags and 

 on ruined walls, so it is evident they do not prefer 

 a low and flat situation, though at first they may 

 make very strong growths in such a position when 

 the soil is rich. Autumn dews and winter rains will 

 cause these vigorous and sappy shoots to canker and 

 rot off at the base by another spring, thus disap- 

 pointing the gardener who looked for success in the 

 summer. 



The real difficulty in Carnation culture is the short 

 duration of the plants. What is uglier than a nursery- 

 man's bed of rooted layers planted in rows in a 

 bed, each with its flower stem stiffly tied up, and the 

 buds probably severely disbudded ! and this more or 

 less must be true of all freshly planted Carnations. 

 The object, then, of picturesque Carnation growing is 

 to keep the old plants in health for two or three years, 

 when a luxuriant mass of growth and flower is pro- 

 duced. When this is achieved the beauty of the 

 Carnation is undeniable. 



It is certain that a Carnation plant will last longer 

 in health when its collar is screened from damp by 

 stones, or by any such protection as is afforded by 

 steeply sloping ground. Extremes of heat are quite 

 as injurious as winter cold, for the Carnation prefers 

 an equable climate that is neither hot nor cold, such 

 as is found over the greater part of our Islands. 



