VIOLA. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



VIOLA. 



773 



positions it requires little care. It will 

 grow in almost any soil, but best on free 

 sandy loam. It is well to naturalise the 

 plant on sunny banks, fringes of woods, 

 and the warmer sides of bushy places to 

 encourage early bloom. 



In the open Sweet Violets thrive 

 on moderately heavy rich soil ; 

 should the soil be light and gravelly, 

 some stiff material and plenty of 

 manure must be added to it ; poor 

 and hard clay will gain by adding 



spring, and afford a partial shade in 

 summer. When the soil is deep and 

 rich, however, Violets will bear sun- 

 shine, and it is well to have a few 

 plants in different positions to ensure 

 a long season of bloom. On south 

 borders Violets dwindle, but a few 

 roots on sunny banks will give some 

 early pickings. 



The insects that trouble the Violet 

 most are green-fly and red-spider. The 

 first is generally the result of a close 



'iola pcdata (Bird's-foot Violet) 



sharp gritty matter and abundance of 

 rotten manure. Violets require shel- 

 ter, but not that of a wall, and in 

 enclosed gardens they are seldom 

 healthy. Their natural shelter is a 

 hedgerow, allowing such currents of 

 pure air as are essential for keeping 

 down red -spider and for healthy 

 foliage. They grow well on the shady 

 side of a Hornbeam hedge, if somewhat 

 naked at bottom, so as to allow the 

 sun to shine on their leaves early in 



unhealthy atmosphere, and is easily 

 got rid of by gentle smokings. Red- 

 spider is induced by strong sun and by 

 dry soil ; hand-dusting with sulphur 

 is the best remedy, but it is easy to 

 prevent its occurrence by free sprink- 

 ling. 



The varieties of the Violet are very 

 numerous. We have the single white 

 and the single rose, the double white, 

 the Czar (a very large and sweet 

 variety), the Queen of Violets, Admiral 



