February, 1916. 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



31 



Notes on New Plants and Flowers 



Wm. Hunt, Ontario Agricultural College, Guelph. 



THE ever-increasing demand for 

 something new in the floral world 

 is perhaps more intense now 

 than at any period in the history of 

 floriculture. This sometimes leads to 

 the introduction of varieties that are 

 often introduced with a great flourish 

 of trumpets in the way of advertising ; 

 varieties which on actual test, under 

 ordinary every-day conditions, dis- 

 close some point of weakness either in 

 habit of growth, color, or perhaps in 

 the constitution or endurance of the 

 plants, that make them worthless to 

 the general plant grower. Taking 

 these facts into consideration, I shall 

 first endeavor to give a brief review of 

 some of the newer or less known plants 

 that have been tested in the College 

 flower borders and grounds during the 

 past five years, most of which have 

 been noted in the reports of the On- 

 tario Horticultural Association during 

 the time mentioned. Those that have 

 -shown special suitability for the ama- 

 teur's garden only will be noted, with 

 date of year when reported on. 



Annuals. 



1910. Calendula Trianon and Calen- 

 dula Meteor. Height, one foot. These 

 varieties are improvements on the older 

 types of these easily grown, enduring 

 annuals. The rich coloring of the 

 flowers and the extremely late flower- 

 ing habit of these plants in the border 

 make them very aecepta/ble at this late 

 season of the year, when almost all 

 other flowers are past and gone. 



Coreopsis marmorata. One and a 

 half feet. The bronzy-brown flowers of 

 this variety give it a place among these 

 useful border plants. It is a distinct 

 addition and relief to the yellow flower- 

 ing varieties. 



Hyacinth Flowered Candytuft. The 

 large and enduring spikes of flowers 

 of this new type of Candytuft still 

 holds its superiority over the older 

 types of these flowers. 



Sunflower Starlight. Three to four 

 feet. This miniature and free flower- 

 ing type of sunflower is very acceptable 

 as a decorative plant in the border, and 

 will furnish a bountiful supply of its 

 lemon-yellow blooms, that are so effec- 

 tive for cut flower decorations. 



Dimorphotheca aurantiaca. Six in- 

 ches. This pretty orange-colored daisy, 

 originally introduced from South Af- 

 rica, makes a very pretty, showy bor- 

 der plant, more especially during the 

 hot summer weather, when sunshine is 

 abundant. It is a sun loving plant, clos- 

 ing up its flowers in dull weather, 

 which makes it almost useless as a cut 



flower. As a border plant, especially 

 on rather light, sandy soil, it is very 

 effective. 



1911. Diascia Barbarae. One foot. 

 Cannot be recommended only to those 

 who delight in a pretty, odd-looking 

 flower. It is not robust enough for the 

 average flower grower. 



Eschscholtzia Thorburni. One foot. 

 A beautiful- form of the California 

 Poppy, but often reverts more or less 

 to the older types, when produced in 

 perfection, the rich, bronzy-crimson 

 coloring of its flowers is indescribably 

 beautiful. 



1912. Rainbow Corn. Three to four 

 feet. The highly colored foliage of 

 this decorative maize still gives it a 

 place as a background plant for a bor- 

 der. Care must be taken in the selec- 

 tion of the seed to secure the best re- 

 sults. 



1913. Centaurea cyanus flore pleno. 

 Three feet. This double variety of 

 corn flower can be recommended as 

 superior to the well-known single types 

 of these flowers, especially as a cut 

 flower. 



Red Sunflower, Four to five feet. 

 This variety of sunflower, first intro- 

 duced by Messrs. Sutton & Sons, Eng- 

 land, is growing in popularity where 

 an easily-grown, effective border plant 

 is required, its rich bronzy-red and gold 

 flowers of medium size making it con- 

 spicuous as a border plant, and also 

 acceptable for decorative purposes as 

 a cut flower, where large quantities of 

 flowers are required. 



Brilliant Rose petunia. One foot. 

 This variety, a production of Sutton & 

 Sons, is very effective in masses in 

 the border or as an edging plant. There 

 are several different colors of this com- 

 pact, dwarf growing type of petunia, 

 that are now catalogued by almost all 

 of our seedsmen. 



Pentsteriion gloxinoides. Two feet. 

 The newer types of these make excel- 

 lent summer bedding plants. They 

 grow from eighteen inches to two feet 

 in height, and are something of the 

 same habit as the tall growing Snap- 

 dragons. The seed requires to be sown 

 early in March indoors, to get the best 

 flowering results. 



Hardy Border Perennials. 



1910. Anchusa Italica. Four feet. 

 Although a plant of a rather coarse 

 nature of grovrth, its showy, deep indi- 

 go-blue flowers, produced in profusion 

 from midsummer until quite late in the 

 autumn, make this plant a conspicuous 

 object in the border. For large peren- 

 nial borders or in the foreground of 

 shrubberies, it is very useful. It is 

 self-seeding and reproduces itself from 

 seed readily. It requires to be kept 

 within bounds on this account. 



Dianthus latifolius flore pleno. (Ever- 

 blooming Sweet William.) This double 

 flowering tjT)e of the Dianthus makes 

 a very showy border plant. It suc- 

 ceeds best treated as a biennial. 



Primula cortesoides sieboldii. Eight 

 inches. (Primula Sieboldii.) Planted 

 in a rather light soil rich in humus. 



The ilower bed he.rt; .siit>wn wa.s iii:tiiU'a r>> lin- .-^i. i riiMuu-s i iui Li^uii ui id Society. St. Thomas 



is surrounded on three sides by ravines, which cross many streets. This creates 



"blind ends" on these streets. The planting of flower beds has been 



adopted by the society as a means of beautifying these "blind ends." 



