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156 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



JUNB 16, 1004. 



tains of Siberia and is a fine rock garden 

 plant in well-drained, deep, sandy soil. 



Arabis alpina is very early flowering 

 and of easiest culture in rather dry soil. 

 Arctostaphylos Uva-Ursi is a small, trail- 

 ing evergreen with shining, coriaceous 

 leaves and flesh-colored flowers and g^ows 

 well in dry soil. The armerias are a 

 handsome group of alpines, flowering 

 from June to August. They like warm, 

 sandy soil. Good species to grow are A. 

 cephalotes, A. vulgaris, A. Laucheana, A. 

 dianthoides and A. plantaginea. Asper- 

 ula cynanchica and A. odorata are useful. 



The large genus aster contains many 

 good plants worth cultivating. The 

 later varieties can be arranged in the 

 background of the alpine garden. Here 

 our native species show their forms in 

 gracefulness and color, and among these 

 are Isevis, multiflorus, turbinellus, pani- 

 culatus, dumosus, vimineus, ericoides, 

 polyphyllus, corymbosus, diffusus, undu- 

 latus, spectabilis, Shortii, Novse-Angliae, 

 patens, ptarmicoides and sericeus. Among 

 European varieties A. alpinus, A. amel- 

 lus, A. Bessarabicus and the Japanese 

 A. Maackii. In half shady spots may 

 be grown the charming A. Stracheyi, four 

 to six inches high, a native of the west- 

 em Himalayas. 



About the genus aubrietia Dr. Wm. 

 Robinson says: "If there were but one 

 family of rock plants known to us, this, 

 which gladdens the rocks of Greece and 

 all near countries with its soft colors 

 in the dawn of spring, would be almost 

 enough to justify the lovers of rock 

 plants for any extravagance in their 

 behalf. In these plants all difficulties 

 of culture, increase, soil, etc., fly away, 

 and, though from the hills above the cities 

 of Greece, on the sites ennobled in human 

 story, they are as happy in our land as 

 the grasses of our fields. There is hardly 

 a position selected for a rock plant that 

 may not be graced by them." A. del- 

 tcidea grandiflora and A. deltoidea 

 Campbelli are the best varieties. 



Campanula alpina, C. carpatica, C. 

 rotundifolia, C. caespitosa, C. Eainerii 

 and C. pulla are good rock plants. Cala- 

 mintha glabella, Chimaphila maculata, 

 Cornus canadensis and C. Suecica are all 

 good. Colchicum autumnale thrives well 

 in a moist, rich soil. Coptis trifolia and 

 Corydalis nobilis are two gems. Cory- 

 dalis fabacea, from Sweden, loves a 

 shady spot. Cotoneaster buxifolia and 



C. rotundifolia are reliable. 

 Cypripediums must not be omitted. 



Suitable species are C. acaule, C. specta- 

 bile, C. pubescens, C. arietinum and C. 

 montanum. Cytisus scoparius and C. al- 

 bus are good. Dalibarda repens likes 

 deep, peaty soil, while the pretty Daphne 

 Cneorum delights in a calcareous soil. 

 Dentaria bulbifera, D. diphylla and D. 

 maxima are interesting. Dianthus con- 

 tains some useful subjects, such as D. 

 arenarius, D. deltoides, D. plumarius, D. 

 proliferus and D. superbus. The latter 

 is liable to perish in winter in rich, moist 

 soil. Dicentras are very ornamental. D. 

 cucullaria and D. eximia should be in 

 every garden. Dodecatheon Meadia au'l 



D. integrifolium are well known. Draco- 

 cephalum Altaiense, native of Siberia, 

 will not be frozen out in New England. 

 Dryas octopetala prefers moist, peaty 

 soil. Epigsea repens, or Mayflower, is 

 the member of the Ericaceae most dear to 

 New England people, with its delicate 

 fragrance and pretty flowers. It does 

 not transplant easily. 



Epimediums like peat and shade. Gaul- 



theria procumbens needs a peat soil 

 pocket. Some of the gems of the alpine 

 garden are found among the gentians. 

 They are hard to cultivate and impatient 

 of disturbance. G. acaulis, from the 

 Alps; G. linearis and G. Andrewsii, from 

 New England; G. Pneumonanthe, G. ni- 

 valis and G. tenella, from Swedish moun- 

 tains, will grow in moist soil battered 

 in the rocks. 



Geranium maculatum and G. sanguin- 

 eum are handsome, species to be recom- 

 mended. Helleborus orientalis and H. 

 viridis are useful in spring. Houstonia 

 cserulea will thrive in a moist spot. 

 Iberis sempervirens is one of the best 

 dwarf perennials grown; it makes a 

 grand rock plant. There are a good 

 many irises, which, in spring and early 

 summer, brighten up the rock garden; 

 such are the native I. cristata, versicolor 

 and many more; also I. Germanica, I. pu- 

 mila, I. Histrio and I. Sibirica. 



In Switzerland there grows a plant, 

 the flower heads of which are envdoped 

 in woolly bracts and which in botanical 

 language is given the name Leontopo- 

 dium alpinum, or Gnaphalium Leonto- 

 podium, but by the inhabitants it is 

 called the edelweiss, "noble white." It 

 likes a firm, well-drained light, calcar- 

 eous soil. The more lime or chalk the 

 soil contains the brighter and purer white 

 are the flower bracts. By natural habit 

 it is a true perennial, but it seems to 

 me better to handle it as a biennial. 

 What leontopodium wants, as nearly all 

 alpine plants want, is a dry base. It 

 may, therefore, be desirable for all (save 

 edelweiss) to take them up in fall and 

 winter them inside. 



Having already taxed your patience 

 severely, and as time will not permit a 

 continuance of this alphabetical list, I 

 shall be pleased to do so on some future 

 occasion. 



SEASONABLE CULTURE. 



Now that you have all your young 

 plants out and started off nicely there 

 is plenty to do to keep you busy until 

 housing time. You need not be idle one 

 minute for want of something to do. 

 Don't forget that it is impossible to 

 cultivate them too much. At least once 

 each week, and oftener if it rains, you 

 should run through them as soon after 

 each rain as you can work the ground. 

 Then you can go through them occn- 

 sionally with the hoe and loosen up 

 the soil between the plants in the row 

 and hoe out the weeds. 



We have had plenty of rain so far in 

 our locality and during this time is when 

 you should be getting your soil into 

 good condition to withstand a long, dry 

 spell, as it may come almost any time 

 and it would be strange if it did not 

 come some time during July or August. 

 Keep the soil worked loose, so that 

 every rain can soak in to be used later 

 on, when no water comes from above 

 for a while. Cultivate deeply. 



The plants we set out first are grow- 

 ing into fine, bushy plants and after 

 making another lot of breaks as a re- 

 sult of the topping they are getting now 

 they will be large enough to house if 

 we are ready to house them. Keep 

 them topped close, however, clear up to 

 housing time, so the plants will be 

 stocky and short. 



If you have some planted for fall 

 blooming outside you should not to]) 

 them any more, but let them come as 

 fast as they want to. If a dry spell 

 sets in, give them a good soaking every 

 few days to help them along. These will 

 appreciate it as they are not intended 

 to be lifted later on. You want to keep 

 them growing as strong as you can. 



There is a vast difference between the 

 plant which is to bloom where it stands 

 and the one which is being prepared to 

 undergo transplanting with the least poss- 

 fiible check. You want to handle the 

 former much the same as you do the 



latter after it has become well estab- 

 lished in the house in the fall, that is, 

 plenty of water and all possible en- 

 couragement to make a strong growth 

 and a heavy crop of large blooms. If 

 you have some old stable manure it will 

 be very beneficial to mulch them about 

 an inch thick with it, to keep them from 

 drying out and a little extra food won't 

 hurt them. 



Under no conditions, however, should 

 you apply the above treatment to the 

 plants which you expect to house later 

 on. The one word "cultivate" em- 

 braces the whole field treatment of these 

 plants and the more you practice it the 

 better will be your plants. Mind, I 

 don't say larger, but better. The larg- 

 est is not always the best and especially 

 is this true in this case. Just the same 

 as a large bloom without substance is 

 not so desirable as a medium-sized 

 bloom which can be shipped across the 

 continent. A. F. J. Baur. 



SNAILS. 



Please tell us what to apply for snails 

 in a bed of carnations. They are right 

 in the heart of the blossoms and eat 

 them badly. I hand-pick them every 

 morning but there are as many more the 

 next morning. Please answer in the 

 Review, as it may benefit someone else 

 with like trouble. A. L, S. 



I have many snails in my carnation 

 benches. What shall I do to get rid of 

 them. J. G. A. 



Snails are among the most disagree- 

 able greenhouse pests, and they are not 

 easy to combat. Hand picking is, of 

 fourse, effective as far as you are able 

 to find them, but "each morning there 

 seems to be as many as ever before." 

 You can destroy many by spraying the 

 plants with some poison, like Paris 

 green, diluted in water, and you can 

 keep them down by dusting the plants 

 thoroughly with tobacco dust or lime. 

 They will not travel where there is much 

 •lust, as it adheres to them on account 

 of the slimy substance they are covered 

 with. Strong salt water will kill them, 



J 



