4 PRESENT-DAY GARDENING 



the winter, often watered it with brine, and at the spring 

 when I sowed them, they had been steeped for twelve 

 hours in dissolved nitre, and mixed them with calcined 

 tartar, yet the effect did not at all answer my expectation." 

 Full directions for culture were given, even to tying the 

 calices of those that burst. He adds that he obtained but 

 poor success, and did not advise the raising of Carnations 

 by seed in England. He names 360 varieties, and nearly 

 all of these had been imported. Some idea is given of 

 the colours prevalent amongst these 360 varieties. "The 

 more ordinary sorts are all of one colour, red, purple, scarlet 

 or white, but the single colours are little esteemed. Those 

 flowers are chiefly valued which are well flaked, striped, or 

 powdered upon white or blush, with darker or lighter red, 

 crimson, or Carnation, sadder or brighter purple, deeper 

 or paler scarlet." "The second impression corrected with 

 many additions" (1676) gives a very good idea of the 

 varieties of Carnations cultivated in England 233 years ago. 



During the next hundred years not much was done in 

 England towards improving the Carnation. There is 

 some description of Carnations in Hill's Eden (1757), in 

 Hanbury's work (1770), and others published at about 

 that time, but not much advance was made except in 

 respect to the Bizarres and Flakes. 



When Curtis established the Botanical Magazine in 

 1787 he intended to illustrate botanical objects and garden 

 flowers of original species ; but a few exceptions were 

 made, and in the second volume an illustration was given 

 of a scarlet Bizarre Carnation named Tartar, raised by an 

 amateur cultivator residing in Lambeth. It is certainly a 

 very good variety, well marked on a good white ground, 

 and equal in merit to Admiral Curzon, which has been 



