CARNATION IN THE GARDEN ii 



save under very special conditions. Will the gardener 

 of the future provide us with a race of hardy Malmai- 

 sons ? If so, I think he will gain a good reward in 

 thanks and in gold. Carnations are particularly 

 acceptable in the old - fashioned kitchen garden 

 herbaceous border ; their beauty is not suited to 

 the formal garden, and when planted formally 

 should only be used for cut bloom and for propa- 

 gation, two things that are indispensable in the 

 modern garden. 



Moderate disbudding I would always allow. Some 

 varieties indeed require it ; the flower buds are so con- 

 gested that all cannot expand freely. It is, however, 

 a matter of individual taste, and should be left an 

 open question. 



How best to determine what Carnations shall be 

 grown is another matter that needs judgment. The 

 varieties that grow well on the strong and cold soils 

 of the northern portion of England do not like the 

 hot and light soils of the south, while some of the 

 yellows and soft reds or pinks do best in the last 

 mentioned. The old and fragrant Clove is apt to 

 die out in the south in hot seasons, while in the 

 north a wet year (like 1903) causes heavy losses the 

 following winter. There are a few extra enduring 

 named varieties I will mention, such as the well- 

 known Raby Pink, that is well to the fore after 

 more than three-score years' wear and tear, but its 

 flower is small as well as deeply fringed, a fault 

 in some folks' opinion, though not in mine. 



Of whites I still put Trojan as the most reliable 



