Reseda 



( 266 



Restio 



division in spring. Soil, fibrous loam and peat in 

 equal parts, with sand. 



Principal Species : 



exaltata, 8' to !(/, Jy., so., fruits blk. vio., seeds 

 aromatic (syn. Alpinia tubulata of Botanical Maga- 

 zine 24yl and Botanical Register 7771). 



RESEDA. (MIGNONETTE.) 



Hardy annual, biennial, or perennial herbs (nrd. 

 Resedaceae). Few of the species are worthy of 

 cultivation, the best being odorata, the Mignonette, 

 which sec. Propagation, by seeds sown in spring 

 where they are to bloom. Soil, common garden 

 soil with lime rubbish mixed with it. 



Principal Species : 



alba, 2', My., bien., wh. Luteola, 1', sum., per., 



glauca, 6", sum., bieii. or yel. Dyer's Rocket. 



per., wh. odorata, 1', per., yel., 



hybrida grandiflora, 1', wh. Mignonette. 



sum., creamy yel., frutesceus. 



hybrid (odorataX alba). 



RESERVE GARDEN. 



In well-appointed gardens a piece of ground is set 

 apart as a nursery from which to draw supplies as 

 needed to replenish exhausted plants elsewhere, to 

 fill up blanks, or to increase and vary the display 

 in other parts of the garden. The reserve 

 garden is the helpmate of the propagating pits 

 and cold frames, which perform similar offices for 

 the tender plants or help half-hardy plants 

 through their delicate stages. Jn gardens where 

 quantities of cut flowers are wanted it is necessary, 

 in the interests of the flower beds and borders, 

 that cut flowers should be obtained elsewhere. 

 There need be no attempt at artistic arrangement. 

 It is better that each subject shall be planted in 

 breaks by itself. 



Material that is to be forced for winter flower- 

 ing usually bulks largely. Bulbs, etc., of all kinds 

 that have been forced may be planted out, unless 

 there is room for them in the grounds, and they 

 will throw useful batches of flowers for several 

 years, although they will not do to force again. 

 Young shrubs, necessary for the filling of window 

 boxes, etc., in the winter, are placed in the 

 reserve garden after they have done duty. For 

 this class of stuff, at least, the reserve garden is 

 the intermediate stage between the propagating 

 ground nursery and the " show " quarters. 



Some part of the reserve garden will contain 

 a number of pot plants, which should always be 

 plunged in winter to prevent frost " chipping " the 

 pots. Lilacs, Hoses, Deutzias, Prunuses, Viburn- 

 ums, Moutan Paeonies, Staphyleas, and Wistarias 

 are a few instances. Tree Ivies in pots, and 

 reserve boxes of climbing Ivies trained to wire 

 trellises for window decoration, will likewise find 

 a place. 



Where rabbits are numerous it is advisable to 

 have a stock of bedding plants in pots ready to 

 make good the ravages committed. 



It is imperative that plenty of water should be 

 laid on in the reserve garden. Breaks of plants 

 of all kinds "lift" much better if given a good 

 soaking about twenty-four hours beforehand, <n 

 the summer. 



REST and RESTING. 



Plants require periods of rest, and unless these 

 are granted the results are unsatisfactory. The 



regular recurrence of darkness brings something in 

 the nature of rest, although the word carries with 

 it a rather different meaning from the rest which 

 night brings to animals. Some functions of the 

 plant's organism, notably transpiration and assimi- 

 lation of carbon-dioxide, cease with the passing of 

 light. Certain phases of growth are more active 

 by day, but, as a rule, the rate of increase in 

 height is greater by night than by day. The 

 whole process is too subtle and complex to be 

 described here in detail, but it may be stated 

 that alternate periods of light and darkness are 

 as necessary to the plant as to the animal. 



When the gardener speaks of resting a plant 

 he refers to a period of comparative dormancy 

 which comes to hardy subjects with the fall of the 

 leaf. Rest in this case is coincident with 

 winter. Whether the plant be a hardy or an 

 exotic one, it must have a rest. Therefore in deal- 

 ing with plants under glass the cultivator strives 

 to give this rest when nature shows signs of lessen- 

 ing vigour. This time comes when as, for in- 

 stance, with many bulbous plants and the majority 

 of Orchids the season's growth has been finished. 

 The rest may be partial or complete. Thus a 

 Hyacinth needs a complete rest, a Crinum and a 

 Vallota only a very partial one. Most Dendrobi- 

 ums enjoy a complete cessation from activity, 

 whilst most Odontoglossums have to be kept grow- 

 ing the whole year round, although even they too 

 have their period of comparative inactivity. Stove 

 shrubs and Ferns are growing more or less all the 

 year round ; still, they enjoy a little relaxation of 

 the stimulus of high cultivation during the winter 

 months. 



The physical conditions necessary to promote 

 the healthy rest of plants may be briefly stated 

 thus: 



(1) A lower temperature than that given when 

 growth is active. 



(2) A greatly decreased water supply. In cases 

 of complete rest none is given, but where 

 pseudo-bulbous and semi-evergreen subjects 

 are concerned just enough is given to 

 prevent shrivelling. 



(3) No manurial stimulants of any kind. 



(4) A drier atmosphere. 



As a rule, it is convenient to rest many plants 

 coincident/ally with the winter season, but this 

 cannot be done where the plant has a strong 

 inclination to flower at that time, like the Helle- 

 bore. 



The eye of the cultivator must be upon the 

 watch for the signs that the plant wishes to com- 

 mence growth. It is inadvisable to arbitrarily 

 keep a plant resting when its buds begin to 

 swell. Water must be given, and a greater degree 

 of heat. With some subjects, notably the Cycla- 

 men, the cultivator has the choice of resting 

 his plants during the summer, and of keeping 

 them growing the whole time. 



RESTIO (xyns. CRASPEDOLEPIS, ISCHYROLE- 

 PIS, MEGALOTHECA, and RHODOCOMA. 

 ROPE GRASS). 



Several of the many species of Restio (prd. Resti- 

 aceee) have been introduced at various times, but 

 none is of great horticultural interest, and it is 

 probable that none of them save sub-verticillatus 



Best Harrmv (see Ononis). 





