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THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



[November 3, 1888. 



cottages form two rectangles, and within the lines 

 there is an expanse of some 7 — 8 acres facing 

 a village green and garden. The garden is not 

 enclosed in any way, but is free for the children 

 to play in, and one of Dr. Barnardo's leading ideas 

 is that the children should freely mingle and play in 

 the homely fashion they would do on a village green. 

 Round the circumference of the green and garden 

 run broad gravelled roads of great width, well con- 

 structed, with similar roads joining them in cross 

 lines; and there are thousands of yards of walks 

 laid with Kentish rag and tar paving, and these 

 walks wind about in various directions, but in all 

 cases avoiding the old timber trees, which have been 

 as fully preserved as possible. Each cottage has its 

 garden, and it is intended that the children shall 

 cultivate these ; and it is proposed to institute a 

 series of competitions, to incite the children to culti- 

 vate their gardens to the utmost. The entire recon- 

 struction and laying out of the grounds was 

 entrusted to Mr. William Holmes, of the Frampton 

 Park Nurseries, Hackney, who is just bringing the 

 work to a close. The design is a fine one, and 

 includes a large extent of grass plat, with belts of 

 shrubbery, large circular beds of Rhododendrons. 

 The rockwork surrounding the large basins it is 

 contemplated to plant with aquatics, and there are 

 two Rose temples; whilst here and there, at promi- 

 nent points, scroll flower-beds have been laid down. 

 As much of the planting was done in late spring, the 

 wet summer has proved very helpful, and but few 

 failures have resulted. The cottage paths are 

 "granolithic"; they are carried all round by the 

 back offices. The drainage of eacli cottage, and in- 

 deed of the whole village, appear to be carried out 

 in the most complete manner. At one point — that 

 opposite the residence of the superintendent— a 

 glimpse of the whole extent of the grounds can be 

 obtained ; the design in laying out being so arranged. 

 One large cottage, raised to the memory of the late 

 Earl Cairns, serves the purpose of a board-room, &c. 

 All the dwellings are planted with creepers of various 

 kinds, and they are fast covering the walls. 



Chiswick Gardeners' Mutual Improve- 

 ment ASSOCIATION. — At the annual general 

 meeting of the members of this Institution, 

 held on Friday evening last, October 26, 

 Mr. George Gordon was unanimously elected 

 Chairman of the meetings during the ensuing 

 session. The following papers were promised 

 to be read on the undermentioned dates: — 

 November 2, Opening Address, by the Chairman, 

 Mr. George Gordon; November 9, "What consti- 

 tutes a Gardener," Mr. John Fraser ; November 23, 

 "Roses and their Cultivation," Mr. T. Bones ; 

 November 30, " Economic Plants of the Order 

 Labiatai," Mr. A. Parsons ; December 7, " An Over- 

 supply of Gardeners — a Remedy," Mr. J. Barry. 



High-priced Cypripediums. — Messrs. Pro- 

 theroe & Morris, of Cheapside, have sold for 

 150 guineas a small plant, with three leaves, of a 

 hybrid Cypripedium, known as Cypripedium Mar- 

 shallianum, to a gentleman resident in America. 

 The plant was a cross between C. venustum and C. 

 concolor. A small plant of C. leucorrhodum was 

 sold at the same time for 40 guineas. 



FILMY FERNS AT KEW. — Readers interested 

 in filmy Ferns will be pleased to learn that the 

 maguificent collection presented to Kew by Mrs. 

 Cooper Foster, in April of this year, is now safely 

 established in its new home, and that almost every 

 one of the plants has made considerable growth this 

 summer. 



Chrysanthemum Shows.— The following list 



of shows for November, includes all of which notice 

 has been received by us. The opening only is given 

 in the case of two-day shows, &c. : — November 5th, 

 Surrey; 0th, Kingston; 7th, National, at West- 

 minster, Bath, and Portsmouth ; Rth, Teddington ; 

 9th, Crystal Palace, Leicester, and Hitchin ; 1.3th, 

 Brighton, Winchester, Devizes, Cardiff, Watford, 



Hammersmith, Twickenham, and West Kent (Bex- 

 ley Heath) ; 14th, Market Harborough, Bradford, 

 Bromley, Cornwall Polytechnic (at Falmouth), and 

 Ancient Society of York Florists ; loth, Pem- 

 brokeshire, Wilts, Aylesbury, Reading, Taunton, 

 Wimbledon, and Royal Horticultural of Ireland ; 

 16th, Devon and Exeter, Sheffield, (and National 

 Provincial), Huddersfield, and Chiswick ; 17th, Rams- 

 bottom, and Derby ; 20th, Edinburgh, Oxford, Liver- 

 pool, and Hanley ; 21st, Birmingham, and Midland 

 Counties, Rugby, National (Committee), Croydon, 

 Bristol, and Banbury ; 22nd, Hull ; 23rd, Pontefract, 

 Bolton, and Stockport; 28th, The Hartlepools. 



Publications Received. — Michigan Agricul- 

 tural College Annual Catalogue. — Lace and Lace. (M. 

 Jesarum & Co., Venice.) — Souvenir d'une Excursion a 

 Cintra. By G. D. Saint Victor. — North of Scotland 

 Horticultural Association Seventh Annual Report 

 (Aberdeen). — Mushroom Culture Simplified (London : 

 Huest & Son, 152, Houndsditch. 



The Flower Garden. 



Herbaceous Border. — The usual clearing-up may 

 now be done ; and this will be all the attention 

 that it will require for the remainder of the present 

 year. Cut off old flower-stems to within about 2 

 inches of the crowns ; afterwards hand-weed and 

 rake over the surface, and, if the soil in the borders 

 is not rich, a top dressing of well-rotted manure 

 may belaid on about 2 inches thick. Avoid point- 

 ing over the surface with a fork or spade, for the 

 roots of the plants are so near to it that only injury 

 will result thereby. The present is the best time 

 of the year for making new, and replanting old, 

 borders, owing to the fact that more species of 

 plants may be lifted and divided than at any other 

 period. For the benefit of those who are taking-up 

 the cultivation of these plants for the first time, 

 and who contemplate making new borders this 

 autumn, a few details may be of some assistance. 

 First then, as to site, I would say that in all cases 

 where the matter is one of choice, preference should 

 be given for an open situation and well-drained soil ; 

 this, however, is not an absolute necessity, as many 

 perennial plants will grow fairly well almost any- 

 where ; still it is as well to bear in mind that there 

 are places which may be described as bad, the worst 

 possible being in the immediate vicinity of large 

 trees, whose • roots impoverish the soil, and the 

 branches in the summer months shade the plants 

 growing near. There is nothing objectionable in 

 having a border in front of dwarf-growing shrubs, 

 with trees in the background, — indeed, this is 

 where we most frequently find them in 

 private gardens, neither is there anything to be said 

 against their being in close proximity to a fence or 

 a wall with an east, west, or south aspect. . Having 

 selected the site and marked out the extent of the 

 border, the ground should be trenched over, and if 

 out of condition a dressing of decayed manure should 

 be worked into the soil as the digging proceeds ; the 

 character of the soil in each case must determine 

 the matter of bringing the bottom spit to the top ; 

 in many instances it is not advisable to do so. If 

 the soil be of a stiff, retentive nature, and liable to 

 bake on the surface in hot weather, nothing is better 

 than mixing a liberal quantity of burnt clay, wood- 

 ashes, leaf-mould, or finely sifted coal-ashes along 

 with the 6taple on the surface. 



In planting an open border — that is, one not 

 near a wall or shrubbery — of, say, 12 feet wide, the 

 arrangement of the plants ought to be of such a 

 character that the border will present a double face, 

 so to speak, the tallest growing species being in the 

 centre, and gradually reducing the height down to 

 the outside. On a border of this width seven rows of 

 plants will be sufficient, and they may be arranged as 

 follows :— Central row: Delphiniums of sorts, Pyre- 

 thrum uliginosum, Helianthus rigidus ; these to be 

 planted at a distance of 6 feet apart; the majority 

 of these will grow from 4.V to 6 feet high. The 

 second row may be at a distance of 2 feet from the 

 preceding, and may contain Michaelmas Daisies in 

 variety, Spiraja aruncus, Verbascum nigrum, V. 



blattarioides, V. niveum, Bocconia japonica, Oeno- 

 thera graadiflora, Papaver bracteatum, Solidago 

 canadense, and Lilium candidum. These will 

 average from 3 to 4 feet. The third row from 

 the centre should be at a distance of 18 inches from 

 the second, and may be planted thus : — Anemone 

 japonica, Aquilegia ccerulea, A. chrysantha, Aspho- 

 delus luteus, Dictamnus fraxinella, Achillea ptarmica 

 fl. -plena, Aster dumosus, A. grandiflorus, A. amellus, 

 A. a. bessrabicus, Astrantia major, Chrysanthemum 

 arcticum, Dielytra spectabilis, Doronicum caucasi- 

 cum, Geum coccineum, Hemerocallis fiava, Iris 

 amcena, I. Krempferi and its varieties, Lobelia 

 fulgens, L. syphilitica, Lychnis chalcedonica, 

 CEnothera Youngi, Phlox, florists' varieties ; Rud- 

 beckia Newmanni, and Stenactis speciosus. The next 

 row should be 8 inches from the edge of the border, 

 and may be planted with such species as Campanula 

 collina, C. carpatica, Draeocephalum austriacum, 

 Gentiana verna, Hepatica triloba and varieties, Iberis 

 gibraltarica, Tussilago farfara variegata, T. fra- 

 grans, Veronica Candida, V. reptans, Helleborus 

 niger and its varieties. The above will form a fairly 

 good and interesting collection, and will afford a 

 long succession of flowers. Before planting tread the 

 surface down moderately firm, and as the planting- 

 proceeds press down each plant also, and finish off 

 with a top-dressing of half-decayed manure. Young 

 plants raised from seed the current year may also be 

 planted out now, not forgetting to disentangle the 

 roots of such as are pot-bound. 



Bulbs. — The majority of Dutch bulbs for flowering 

 in beds outside ought to be planted now, including 

 Hyacinths, Tulips, Narcissus, &c. Plant also a few 

 Anemones and Ranunculuses for early flowering. 1 1 

 will be advantageous to cover all these subjects with 

 about 2 inches of cocoa-fibre refuse. J. Horsefield. 

 Heytesbury. 



Forestry. 



Timber Selection and Marking. — As the month 

 of November opens, this is by far the most important 

 work of the forester. So important is it indeed, that 

 many owners prefer to keep a general oversight of 

 the operation themselves. Where the timber is of an 

 ornamental character this is no doubt desirable ; but 

 under other conditions it is well that the forester be 

 allowed as free a hand as possible, for being more 

 constantly in the woodlands, his acquaintance with 

 the wood under his charge is naturally closer. This, 

 however, is of course quite a matter between em- 

 ployer and employee, and is only remarked upon in 

 passing. To treat the subject in order, the first 

 consideration will be 



Marking Instruments. — These are not so unim- 

 portant as may at first appear, and will consist of 

 either knife (scribe), hammer and axe combined ; 

 and of paint brushes. I have seen standing timber 

 marked with pencil, in one case especially on an 

 estate belonging to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, 

 and the figures remained visible for several years, as 

 the timber was not felled as intended; but this is 

 not to be recommended. For timber - marking 

 generally there is probably no instrument so much 

 used as the knife or scribe. This in one form or 

 another is familiar enough to most who are used to 

 woodland work, but there is probably not one instru- 

 ment in ten which is thoroughly effective. The most 

 common pattern is that which closes like an ordinary 

 pocket or pruning knife, and not unfrequently is set 

 in the handle by the side of a knife-blade. Such an 

 instrument as this may do duty once, but is 

 totally unsuitable for any amount of work. A 

 great essential in a good timber scribe is thorough 

 rigidity, and this the ordinary hinged instru- 

 ment lacks to a very great extent. Another 

 drawback is the shortness of the " bill " or 

 cutting portion, and it is also very often 

 badly formed. The instrument I use, and which 

 I have given a good deal of wear in an extensive 

 practice, I obtained from a firm in Hereford, and 

 is by far the best thing which has come under my 

 notice. It is used by most of the railway com- 

 panies' inspectors, and consists of an octagonal Wal- 

 nut handle, about 5 inches long, somewhat Pear- 

 shaped. Into this the blade, about 3£ inches long, 

 screws very firmly, and the whole instrument is 

 as rigid as though made in one piece. The "bill," 

 or cutting portion, was originally about lj- inch long, 

 and carefully turned, so that the curved edge which 

 makes the incision works quite smoothly. When 

 not in use the blade goes readily into the vest pocket, 

 and the handle into the coat. The co3t of this instru- 



