FEBRUARY 293 



varieties, of which those\of Elwes and Foster rank 

 deservedly high. I have only tried Galanthus 

 Elwesii myself, and I find it quite satisfactory, 

 although it is planted in ground heavier than this 

 form is said to thrive in, for it likes a light soil, and 

 if peat can be added it is very happy indeed. My 

 Elwes bulbs are flowering well now, though the 

 old kind is not yet in bloom, and with them are 

 studding the grass many yellow winter aconites, 

 the first harbingers of spring. Horticultural man- 

 uals tell us to plant the winter aconite in good 

 heavy soil, but experience teaches that the horti- 

 culturist may sometimes nod, for my bulbs, which 

 are planted in good old loamy ground, are never 

 robust or free in their flowering, while those of a 

 neighbour which are grown beneath the eaves of 

 the house in dry poor soil have flowers double the 

 size of mine, and long stems which make them 

 unusually good for cutting a quality rarely present 

 in the winter aconite. 



There is as yet little that can be done out of 

 doors, for the danger of winter's treachery is not 

 yet over, and it behoves the gardener to be wary 

 in his doings. This is a good time, however, to 

 look through the rose trees, and to remove all wiry, 

 twiggy wood, if it has not hitherto been done. In 

 the case of standards this is, in my opinion, almost 

 all the pruning that need be effected, but it is 

 very important ; good roses will not grow on thin, 

 wiry wood, and the more that is cut out the better 

 will be the result. But it is not only poor wood 

 that must be got rid of, but also superfluous wood, 

 to let in air and light to the heart of the tree ; 



