My New Zealand Garden 37 



British Isles, we are not swept by sea spray nor 

 wrapped in sea fogs, although we have a super- 

 abundance of the four winds that blow, and a 

 Wellington man is supposed to be known in other 

 parts by holding his hat on. His hat trick does 

 not minimize the curious tradition that his par- 

 ticular city is subject to two prevailing or trade 

 winds instead of one. 



Hydrangeas grow very large in Scilly, and seem 

 to enjoy the mists which envelop them so often. 

 I saw no blue ones there, perhaps because they 

 have nothing but pure granite to grow in ; and I 

 should avoid planting them in that, for I had 

 rather have a blue, however small, than a pink, 

 however large. 



In Auckland nearly all are a good deep blue, 

 growing on scoria soil. I have not yet succeeded 

 in growing a good blue one myself, though I have 

 tried many ways ; and as iron is supposed to turn 

 the colour of their flowers blue, I buried coils of 

 iron wire round their roots. As this plan failed, I 

 pulled the plants up in disgust, but left the wire 

 in the ground, which someone will vote a nasty 

 trick when they try to dig there. A friend of 

 mine had a very fine plant growing in a pumice 

 soil, which had beautiful large flowers of the palest 

 blue. 



One of the advantages of a climate like this 

 is the large amount of fresh air that one can 



