Vases 



( 422 ) 



Vegetable Marrow 



Principal Species : 

 afrioaua, 10', sum., wh. 

 aromatica, 1'2', sum., wh. 

 Phalasnopsis, 10', sum., 



wh., lip blush, yel. 



planifolia, 20', sum., 

 greenish wh. The fruit 

 of this is the vanilla of 



commerce. 



VASES. 



The proper arrangement of cut flowers in the 

 dwelling room and upon the dinner table necessi- 

 tates a supply of various makes and sizes of vases. 

 There are innumerable artistic designs now avail- 

 able at reasonable prices, and even the most 

 exacting of flower arrangers may find something 

 to suit his or her individual taste. 



China and glass are both utilised, and glass 

 vases especially can be had in all manner of tints 

 and shades. On the whole, clear glass receptacles 

 are the most useful, as flowers of any colour can 

 be placed in them without fear of clashing. 

 Coloured glass, on the other hand, may be, and is, 

 employed with excellent effect in many cases, but 

 where a decided tone is adopted the number of 

 flowers that it is possible to use is considerably 

 reduced. This association of colours is one of the 

 most important branches of the floral artist's work. 



With regard to size, the decoration of a large 

 dinner table will call for a number of receptacles 

 varying in size from the tall trumpet shaped tases 

 or epergnes in the middle to the smaller'specimen 

 glasses which stand immediately before the guests, 

 and which are meant to take only a single Rose or 

 Carnation with its accompanying greenery. Whether 

 large or small, the vases should have a sufficiently 

 long, hollow stem to hold the flowers securely. 

 Many otherwise excellent patterns are lacking in 

 this respect, and their value as cut flower holders 

 is severely discounted thereby. 



For room decoration heavier and more massive 

 vases are required, to fill corners and to stand upon 

 sideboards or special stands. In these it is per- 

 missible to use much bigger flowers, and such a 

 vase, filled with Chrysanthemums for instance, 

 may be made to look very effective. The material 

 generally chosen is china, and both the trumpet 

 and urn shaped patterns, with others intermediate 

 in character, are to be had. In all cases it is a 

 most important point that the weight of the vase 

 should be in proportion to'the flowers it is expected 

 to hold, or the equilibrium of the former will be 

 seriously imperilled. 



In the flower garden vases for living plants play 

 a great part. Some amount of taste is necessary 

 in apportioning them, for it is easy to have too 

 many. Also a vase that would bo quite suitable in 

 the front garden of a London suburban villa would 

 be ridiculous in a larger and more pretentious 

 garden, and vice versa. Here, too, the height of 

 the occupants must be strictly proportioned to the 

 size of the vase. When all these items are taken 

 into consideration the flower garden stands to gain 

 considerably by the inclusion of vases. The most 

 expensive ones are made of stone, or of brickwork 

 cemented over, and in some instances the value 

 and expense are increased by more or less elaborate 

 carving. Of these larger vases and the part they 

 play perhaps no better instances can be adduced 

 than those in Regent's Park, which, with their 

 complement of Palms, Abutilons, Dracasnas, and 

 Castor Oil Plants among the taller subjects, 

 finished off round the edges with such trailers as 

 Campanula isophylla, C. i. alba, Ivy-leaved Gera- 

 niums, Mimulus moschatus Harrison!!, and the 

 variegated Nepeta, are invariably one of the 



features of the bedding. In the flower gardens 

 attached to the larger private estates, the terrace 

 surrounding the mansion is a capital place for 

 vases with low pedestals. Stonework is generally 

 favoured in such cases. Larger vases may be 

 fixed at the intersection of walks, or at the ends, 

 of short vistas, and these should always be mount ed 

 upon tall pedestals and filled with plants which 

 attain to a good height, otherwise the effect is 

 insignificant. 



Vases of ordinary potware are in vogue, but the 

 receptacles of these are frequently so shallow that 

 only dwarf plants can be put in them. Also the 

 ware is liable to chip if exposed to sharp frost. 

 It is advisable, therefore, to remove these vases to 

 cover in the autumn. Stone receptacles stand the 

 weather much better, and thus, after the summer 

 occupants have gone, they may be tilled with 

 dwarf growing shrubs for the winter months. 

 Neither stone nor ware vases should have the 

 green moss washed from them. It usually appears 

 after a season or two, and helps to tone down the 

 newness and garishness of the receptacles. 



For small gardens rustic vases are to be pre- 

 ferred to all others. Individual ingenuity and taste 

 will easily construct them out of small tubs, 

 covered with rough bark or sheets of virgin cork. 

 Small margarine or butter tubs are excellent. The 

 legs should be of rough, unbarked wood. Painted 

 tubs are occasionally seen, but unless the colour is 

 a dark green, to tone with the surrounding grass 

 and shrubs, the effect is not good. 



P'resh soil and drainage should be put in once a 

 year, and practically any of the common summer 

 bedding plants may be utilised. 



VEGETABLE MARROW. 



The Vegetable Marrow is high in favour as a 

 cottagers' vegetable. Usually the fruits are eaten 

 whilst young and tender ; if the skin is too hard 

 to allow the entry of the thumb-nail it is con- 

 sidered too old. Ripe Marrows make an excellent 

 preserve. 



The plants are very easy to grow, and the only 

 difficulty experienced by the cottager is to get 

 early plants. The best results arc obtained by 

 planting out of doors in prepared stations by the- 

 end of May. To do this, seed must be sown in heat 

 early in April. One plump seed may be placed in 

 a thumb pot, broad or wedge end downwards, 

 and as soon as the seedlings appear they may 

 be potted into 4|" pots. Or the seed may be 

 placed straight away in the.4J" pot and sub- 

 sequent potting avoided. Let the soil be goocl 

 loam three parts, and leaf mould one part, with one- 

 eighth sharp sand. Do not make the soil very 

 firm. If a place in a warm house cannot be 

 obtained, a cold frame kept close, or even a corner 

 in the window of a sunny dwelling room, may be 

 made to serve, but the plants will be later. 



The stations should be prepared fully a couple 

 of months prior to planting, as although the 

 Marrow is a deep feeder it is advisable not to 

 bring the roots of the young plants into close 

 contact with rank manure. Dig out holes 1 yard 

 square and 1' deep, place in the bottom I!" of 

 good farmyard manure, return the soil to its 

 place, and plant on the top of the mound. Old 

 Violet beds come in capitally for Marrows, and the 

 frames may be kept on for a little while after 

 planting in case of frost. 



It is always advisable to have covering material 

 at hand for two or three weeks after planting outj 



