

52 



HE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



UARY 



showy, one named Osakasuki being especially 

 gorgeous. Spiraeas, grown as isolated specimens, 

 were also attractive, whilst S. prunifolia massed 

 in a bed near to the waterside showed up con- 

 spicuously. Rhus copallina, both standard and 

 bush plants, provided excellent colouring, and the 

 Viburnums, including V. Lentago and V. Opulus, 

 were equally as beautiful. Mention must also 

 be made of the handsome Stuartia pseudo- 

 Camellia, Zelkova acuminata, Rosa nitida and R. 

 rugosa, which was splendid seen in the mass in 

 beds. Beside these may be mentioned Pyrus 

 alnifolia, P. Tschonoskii, Prunus Sargentii, P. 

 orthosepala, P. Maximowiezii ; many of the 

 Hypericums; Enkianthus japonicus, Euonymus 

 americanus, E. alatus, E. europaeus atropur- 

 pureus, E. Sieboldianus, Cornus Nuttallii, C. 

 alba atrosanguinea, Berberis vulgaris, B. 

 amurensis, B. diaphana, B. virescens, and 

 dictyophylla. Amongst the more beautiful 

 the climbers were noticed the following . 

 Vitis inconstans (Ampelopsis Veitchii) ; Rhus 

 toxicodendron, which, trained to a single pole or 

 a tripod formed of stout branches, gives a mag- 

 nificent display of colour in the shrubberies in 

 late autumn ; ornamental Vines, especially V. 

 Coignetia*, V. Thunbergii, V. armata Veitchii, 

 and V. vinifera purpurea. Several of the new 

 species of Rubus introduced by Mr. E. H. 

 Wilson from China have been excellent, and 





v. 

 B. 



of 



especially R. Lambertianus, R. massiliensis, R. 

 Playfairianus, and R. coreanus. Other new 

 plants from the same source include several un- 

 determined species of Berberis, Cotoneaster, 

 Cornus, Cerasus, Crataegus, Pyrus, Prunus, 

 Staphylea, Spiraea, and Be tula, at present grown 

 under numbers. Mention must also be made of 

 Diervilla japonica, Liquidambar formosana, 

 Rhus vernicifera, Staphylea bumalda, Vibur- 

 num fcetidum (scarlet), V. ichangense (bronze), 

 Vitis pentagona (yellow), V. heterophylla 

 Delavayana, V. betulifolia (red), V. Thomsonii, 

 Acer Henryi (red), and A. oblongum (deep yel- 

 low). The foregoing is not a complete list of the 

 many beautiful plants grown at Aldenham that 

 are worthy of cultivation for their autumn tint- 

 ing, but it represents many of the choicer 

 species and varieties. Edwin 1 hit. 



VITEX AGNUS-CASTUS. 



It is recorded that Vitex Agnus-castus was in- 

 troduced into the British Isles in 1670 from the 

 Mediterranean Tegion, where the plant is com- 

 monly known as the " Chaste " tree. Despite 

 the fact that most nurserymen dealing in trees 

 and shrubs offer the plant in their catalogues, it 

 is comparatively little grown in gardens. The 

 reason for this may be that, being a south Euro- 

 pean shrub, the plants do not succeed well in 

 exposed positions ; but whatever may be the short- 

 comings of Vitex Agnus-castus in this direction, 

 a glance at the illustration (fig. 28) affords suffi- 

 cient evidence of its value as a subject for a 

 wall, and it need only ba grown in the open 

 garden in comparatively mild localities. 



A deciduous shrub belonging to the natural 

 order Verbenaceae, Vitex Agnus-castus grows to a 

 height of some 6 feet or more in favourable posi- 

 tions in the open, but against a wall this height is 

 exceeded, the plant illustrated, on a west wall at 

 Kew, being about 14 feet high. The flowering 

 season extends from the end of August until 

 October. The individual blossoms are on the 

 small side, but the profusion with which they are 

 produced on the long, slender terminal and axil- 

 lary panicles more than compensates for any de- 

 ficiency in size. They are white tinged with 

 lilac. The foliolate leaves are generally in fives. 

 The plants thrive best in light, well-drained 

 soils. Cuttings root readily in sandy soil in a 

 close frame if inserted towards the end of the 

 summer or early in autumn. To obtain long 

 panicles of blossoms, more particularly on wall 

 specimens, fairly hard pruning is necessary in 

 March, similar to that afforded the varieties of 

 Buddleia variabilis. A. O. 



HERBACEOUS BORDER. 



DIMORPHOTHECA AURANTIACA. 



At the R.H.S. Temple Flower Show in 1908 

 Dimorphotheca aurantiaca, a beautiful, half- 

 hardy annual, of small stature, received an 

 Award of Merit from the Floral Committee", 

 and since then its popularity has increased 

 enormously with each succeeding year. 



The flowers are a rich orange-gold colour, and 

 measure from 2 inches to 3 inches in diameter; 

 at the time of its introduction the height was 

 given as 15 inches, but probably from 9 inches to 

 12 inches would be more accurate. The plant is 

 of a rather spreading habit and very suitable for 

 massing in beds, while it is effective planted in 

 groups in the front of herbaceous borders. 



Select the sunniest position in the garden for 

 planting, as the sun has much to do with the 

 plant's well-being. The seed should be sown in 



SWEET PEA DISEASE. 



(Continued from p. 36.) 



no actual cure for the streak. 



I am afraid it must be admitted that there is 



Tomato stripe, 

 which is closely allied to it, is considered to be 



quite incurable, and until a cure is found for 

 stripe, it is hopeless to expect that one will be 

 found for the streak. The problem is, therefore 

 how to prevent its appearance, and it is towards 

 the attainment of this object that all our experi- 

 ments should be directed. 



As I said before, I have always held the 

 opinion that the disease may be carried in the 

 seed. This opinion was confirmed by a report 

 made some time ago that the seeds of Tomatos 

 and Potato sets may — and often do — contain my- 

 celium or the germs of disease. In 1910 I had 

 to delay sowing Sweet Peas until April ; I then 

 sowed on soil which had produced hitherto no- 



Fig. 28. — vitex agnus-castus on a west-wall: 



[Photograph by E. J. Wallis. 



FLOWERS, WHITE TINGED WITH LILAC. 



sandy soil in early spring in a temperature of 

 from 55° to 65°, and the seedlings, when large 

 enough to handle, transplanted into boxes or 

 small pots. After being thoroughly hardened 

 off, they should be planted in their flowering 

 quarters at about the end of May or beginning 

 of June. Dimorphotheca aurantiaca is also a 

 suitable subject for the cool greenhouse. 



In habit, growth and foliage, as well as in 

 height and size of bloom, the hybrids of the plant 

 are similar to the type, but the flowers vary in 

 colour. Some are pure white, others blush-white, 

 red, light orange, sulphur yellow, bright golden- 

 yellow, and beautiful salmon shades from deli- 

 cate salmon to deep salmony-orange. There are 

 varieties with different-coloured zones, such as 

 white with a broad sulphur-yellow zone, or soft 

 salmon with a deep salmony-red inner circle, 

 and these greatly enhance the beauty of the 

 flowers. /. B. M. 



thing but Potatos and fruit. The ground had been 

 heavily manured for the Potatos, and nothing 

 was given to the Sweet Peas but a little dried 

 blood. They bloomed abundantly for a short 

 time, beginning in July; but by the middle of 

 August many of the plants were affected 

 by disease. In order to test whether the disease 

 was transmitted in the seed, I saved a pod or 

 two of Czarina from a plant which took the 

 disease rather late. As a rule, a diseased plant 

 fails to produce seed, but it frequently happen* 

 that the plant is attacked after the pods are near- 

 ing maturity. The se^d I saved was sown the 

 following February. It grew very slowly, but 

 seemed healthy ; the plants were set out in the- 

 middle of April, and remained healthy until they 

 were 15 inches or 18 inches high. Then they suc- 

 cumbed, collapsing quite suddenly, and I con- 

 sider that their fate tends to bear out the 

 theory that the disease was latent in the seed. 



. 



