352 



Gardening for Amateurs 



duced of late years, do approximate more 

 and more to the standard of perfection set 

 by the dressed flowers on cards. 



Flakes and Bizarres are the Exhibition 

 Carnations par excellence; at one time they 

 were the only Carnations considered worthy 

 to be exhibited. The best growers of the 

 mid -nineteenth century devoted themselves 

 exclusively to the raising of Flakes and 

 Bizarres, and if any Selfs occurred amongst 

 their seedlings, ruthlessly destroyed them. 

 The fact that Selfs do occur amongst seed- 

 lings which are intended to be Flakes and 

 Bizarres proves that these latter are not 

 necessarily less hardy than Selfs. They all 

 come of the same stock ; you might as well 

 say that a tabby kitten, as such, was weaker 

 than a black one. But the truth is the 

 earlier growers over-fed and over-coddled 

 their exhibition Carnations, with the natural 

 result that the strains became delicate and 

 susceptible to disease ; and acquired the 

 reputation of not being hardy enough to 

 grow in the open border. 



If made to live the simple life out of doors 

 for a few generations, there seems to be no 

 reason why Bizarres and Flakes should not 

 be as hardy as any other Carnations. The 

 late Mr. James Douglas has recorded how, 

 thirty years ago, he found the best Flakes 

 and Bizarres he had then seen growing out 

 in cottage gardens in the Tyne valley near 

 Newcastle. As I have mentioned when 

 treating on layering, Mr. Douglas seemed 

 inclined to attribute the hardiness of these 

 Carnations partly to the fact that the layers 

 were not taken off till November, and so 

 were well ripened and rooted. 



Still, the cultivation of Flakes and Bizarres 

 certainly languished until Mr. H. R. Taylor, 

 of Oakleigh, Cheam, the chairman of the 

 National Carnation Society (Southern Sec- 

 tion) took them in hand. The difficulties 

 of raising new and improved varieties have 

 been immense ; but Mr. Taylor's enthusiasm 

 has been dauntless, his patience unfailing, 

 and magnificent varieties have resulted 

 from his careful system of cross-breeding. 

 But with the scientific side of the matter 

 I cannot deal ; the point which will interest 

 my readers is that Mr. Taylor considers that 

 " they are hardier than most of the other 

 varieties." He also states they are in- 



variably sweet-scented, which, it must be 

 owned, many Selfs and Fancies are not. 



Mr. Taylor has won the first prizes 

 for Flakes and Bizarres in the Amateur 

 Division of the London Carnation Show, 

 for the last seven years, with Carnations 

 mainly of his own raising. Until this 

 year there was a difficulty in distributing 

 them, as by the rules of the National Carna- 

 tion Society amateurs were precluded from 

 selling. An additional rule has, however, 

 been enacted, permitting an amateur to 

 issue a catalogue and sell varieties of his 

 own raising. It is now therefore possible 

 for the general public to obtain Mr. Taylor's 

 Carnations. 



Amongst the most notable Bizarres and 

 Flakes are of Scarlet Bizarres, Admiral 

 Curzon (Eason), a variety which has been 

 winning prizes for more than sixty years, 

 but is now said to be nearly extinct. Car- 

 bine and Armourer (Taylor) are strong and 

 vigorous varieties ; and Remus (Douglas) 

 is also good. Of Crimson Bizarres I may 

 name Black Diamond, Premier, London 

 1912, Zebra, and Amersham, which have 

 all been raised by Mr. Taylor, who considers 

 them excellent for the border ; also Sonata, 

 a pink and purple Bizarre, which is par- 

 ticularly sweet-scented. Of Scarlet Flakes 

 Torchlight (Taylor) is fine for exhibition, 

 and John Peel (Taylor) excellent both for 

 border and for exhibition. In Purple Flakes 

 Gordon Lewis (Dodwell) is still a strong 

 grower. The Rose Flakes Dick Swiveller 

 (Brown), Mrs. T. Lord (Lord), and Rose 

 Noble (Taylor) are said to be suitable for 

 the border as well as for exhibition. 



I cannot write from personal knowledge 

 of Flakes and Bizarres, as I have never 

 grown any ; but concerning Selfs and Fancies 

 I know a good deal from personal experience 

 in my own garden, from my observations at 

 shows, and from my annual visit to Eden- 

 side. And Mr. James Douglas has most 

 kindly favoured me with information con- 

 cerning not only Carnations already dis- 

 tributed, but also novelties. 



White Selfs. Amongst the older varie- 

 ties Trojan and Kate Nickleby do well in 

 the border ; the latter is robust and has a 

 fine flower. Mrs. Henwood, though small 

 and dwarf, has a neat bloom ; in form similar 



