March 16, 1912.] 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



1G0 



finished, dust the rows over with soot, repeating 

 the dusting at intervals, soot being a capital 

 manure and a deterrent of slugs. 



The Rock-garden. — Sprine is tl e most im- 

 portant season in the rock and Alpine garden, 

 and every effort should be made to have every- 

 thing tidy, and as attractive as possible. Accu- 

 mulations of dead leaves, sticks, and other rub- 

 bish should be cleared away, giving the rockery 

 a general overhauling. See that the stronger- 

 growing plants do not encroach on other weaker- 

 growing subjects, as choice plants may be lost if 

 this is permitted. Where the roots have become 

 exposed by continual rains, a top-dressing of soil 

 should be applied over them. Study the require- 

 ments of the individual plants by giving peat, 

 rubble, or loam, as is necessary. 



Perennial Phloxes. — These showy summer 

 and autumn flowering plants are worthy of ex- 

 tended cultivation, but only the choicer varieties 

 should be included. Clumps of perennial Phloxes 

 in striking colours are almost essential in the 

 herbaceous border, whilst a large bed or border 

 devoted entirely to a collection is most interesting 

 and showy during a considerable part of the 

 summer. They are strong-rooting plants, requir- 

 ing plenty of nourishment, and the ground should 

 be well trenched and manured before they are 

 planted. Plants that were propagated last 

 autumn, and new varieties obtained from the 

 nurseries should be planted now. Allow plenty 

 of room ; a distance of 3 or 4 feet apart is not 

 too much space for the stronger-growing varie- 

 ties. The spaces between may be planted with 

 Violas or other low-growing plants. The follow- 

 ing varieties were especially good at exhibitions 

 last season : — Elizabeth Campbell, Eminence, 

 Lady de Bathe, Baron Van Dedem, G. A. 

 Strohlein, Dr. Konigshofer, Duchess of Rox- 

 burgh, Lady Tweeddale, D. M. McKinnon, Frau 

 Ant. Buchner, and Goliath. 



PLANTS UNDER GLASS. 



By Thomas Stevenson, Gardener to E. Mocatta, Esq., 



Woburn Place, Addlestone, Surrey. 



Fuchsias. — The Fuchsia is a valuable green- 

 house plant, as its season of flow T ering is a pro- 

 longed one. It is best to grow young plants, 

 notwithstanding that they may not produce such 

 an abundance of bloom at the same time as older 

 specimens. Cuttings rooted in September, and 

 potted in " 60 " pots in November or early this 

 year, are growing freely, and will be benefited by 

 being placed in larger pots. To obtain pyramid 

 plants the side growths should be pinched at the 

 second pair of leaves, allowing the leading shoot 

 to grow unchecked until it shows signs of bloom- 

 ing, when it should be stopped also, allowing 

 another shoot to take its place. The reason for 

 this is that when blooms develop from the axils of 

 the leaves the latter rarely have leaf buds as well, 

 whereas, to obtain evenly-balanced specimens, 

 shoots are required from every joint. If my ad- 

 vice is followed in respect to pinching, and the 

 plants grown in a warm, moist atmosphere, good 

 specimens may be had by July or August. Old 

 plants of Fuchsia may be overhauled and pruned, 

 placing them afterwards in a warm, moist house. 

 If room is limited in the other plant-houses, they 

 may be accommodated in Peach-houses or vineries 

 that have just been started. They may be 

 allowed to remain in these till such times as the 

 legitimate houses are available. The plants will 

 need only a small amount of water at the roots 

 until they have grown somewhat, but the shoots 

 should be sprayed lightly two or three times 

 daily. The repotting of the plants should be de- 

 ferred until the young shoots are about an inch 

 long, when most of the old soil may be shaken 

 from the roots, and the plants potted afresh in 

 receptacles of the same size as before, or a trifle 

 larger. The potting compost should be of a 

 moderately light texture, and rich in quality. In 

 the case of large soecimen Fuchsias, I prefer to 

 place the plants direct in their flowering pot, 

 allowing plenty of room in the pots for top dress- 

 ings later; this is the best method of getting 

 fuchsias to bloom over a considerable period. 



Hanging Baskets. — The present is a suit- 

 able time to arrange hanging baskets, which 

 rnay be employed either for the decoration of 

 the conservatory, the large greenhouse, and the 



•°7 e \ * have also found them useful when fur- 

 nished with the stove plants for standing in jar- 

 dinieres, the shoots depending in a most natural 

 and graceful manner. Plants suitable for the 



purpose include many kinds cf Ferns, Ivy-leaved 



Pelargoniums, Fuchsias, Begonias, and Cam- 

 panulas, whilst among stove plants it would be 

 difficult to find a subject that would not do even 

 better in baskets than in pots. Codiaeums (Cro- 

 tons), Eulalias, Dracaena Godseffiana, D. Sanderi, 

 Caladiums, Acalypha musaica, A. marginata, and 

 A. hispida, which grows better in baskets, and 

 probably shows itself off to better advantage than 

 in any other way. In arranging the subjects in 

 the baskets the centre plants may not furnish 

 the sides, and other small-growing subjects, such 

 as varieties of Selaginella, Panicum, and Trades- 

 cantia, should be worked in. 



Bulbs. —The spring - flowering bulbs are de- 

 veloping very fast this season, and it might be 

 an advantage to place some of the later batches 

 of Tulips and Narcissi in a frame under a north 

 wall to retard them, and thus prolong the season 

 by a week or two. 



Clivia (Imantophyllum). — The Olivia is 



one of the hardiest and most easily grown green- 

 house plants. Specimens in bloom are very 

 showy, their flowers lasting for a long time. 

 Well-established plants may be had in flower, by 

 slight forcing, from Christmas onwards, the usual 

 time of blooming being" March and April. The 

 plants should be liberally supplied with liquid 

 manure from the time they commence throwing 

 up their flower spikes until thev have completed 

 their season of growth. The old varieties of C. 

 miniata, including cyrtanthiflora, have been 

 superseded by others, having both larger and 

 brighter flowers. Olivias may be propagated by 

 division as soon as they have done flowering, pot- 

 ting single shoots, with roots attached, in 4g-inch 

 or 6-inch pots — according to their size — in a 

 fairly rich compost, consisting of loam, well- 

 decayed manure, and sand. After potting, the 

 plants should be placed in a w T arm, moist house 

 to encourage fresh root action, and enable them to 

 recover from the check caused by cutting through 

 the large, fleshy roots. When they have grown 

 well in the new soil they may be removed to 

 a cool green-house for the remainder of the 

 season ; if fairly strong, they should flower well 

 in the following spring. Older plants may be 

 afforded larger pots as they become necessary, 

 although young specimens, in pots ranging from 

 5 inches to 8 inches in diameter, are the most 

 useful for decoration purposes. 



Canna. — -Few plants make a better floral 

 show in their season than the Canna, and. where 

 good batches of plants are required, the present 

 is a suitable time for splitting up the old stools 

 and repotting them. Large plants employed for 

 conservatory decoration la>t season and grown in 

 6-inch pots* may be placed in 9-inch pots. The 

 most useful system of growing them ? is to put 

 each young shoot separately in a "54 "-size pot, 

 placing it in a " 32 " pet as soon as it is well 

 rooted. The young rhizomes should be severed 

 from the old 'stoof by means of a sharp knife, 

 and with, if possible, a few roots attached. Use 

 a light compost for potting, and place the plants 

 in a warm frame or intermediate house, where 

 they will soon make new roots and grow 

 freely. At the start water sparingly and 

 with* great care, but later in the season water 

 mav be applied copiously. The repotting of the 

 plants must be done before the roots become 

 pot-bound, and at that stage they should be 

 afforded fresh air to keep them stocky. The foli- 

 age should be syringed frequently during hot 

 weather to keep it free from red-spider. 

 When the plants are well rooted, liquid manure 

 mav be given freely, also a dressing weekly of 

 artificial manure, stimulants being necessary to 

 obtain good so ike a of bloom in these compara- 

 tively small po'ts. In many gardens old varieties 

 are grown vear after year, notwithstanding that 

 manv greatlv improved r-orts are obtainable, and 

 would well repay the extra cost even in their 



first season. 



Ixora.— Ixoras may with advantage be pitted 

 now. Employ as a rooting medium peat, lsaf- 

 mould. and silver-sand : a little good loam mixed 

 with these materials suits some of the stronger- 

 growing varieties, but it should be of a fairlv 

 light texture and fibrous. Straggly plants should 

 be pruned into shape a little, deferring their pet- 

 ting until thev have grown into good form. Cut- 

 tings of Ixoras root freely all through the sum- 

 mer months. Young shoots having a little hard 

 wood or "heel" attached make the best cut- 

 tings, and should be rooted in a moderate 

 amount of bottom heat. 



THE KITCHEN GARDEN. 



By Edwin Beckett, Gardener to the Hon. VlCARY Gibrs, 



Aldenham House, Hertfordshire. 



Asparagus.— This vegetable is diilicult to 

 grow in many localities b< ause the soil is not 

 suitable; but by careful preparation of the 

 ground much of the difficulty may be overcome. 

 Asparagus requires an open situation and a 

 well-drained, deeply worked soil that lias been 

 heavily enriched with manure. On heavy land, 

 suitable ingredients must be incorporated with 

 the soil to lighten it, and if the staple is of a 

 very crude nature, it is advisable to wheel some 

 of it away altogether. On light soils, the beds 

 may be made on the flat : on heavier lands they 

 are best raised slightly. Assuming that the 

 ground the beds are intended to occupy has been 

 well trenched and freely manured some time 

 previously, it may be fork I over, and the 

 position of the beds marked out. The beds 

 should be 4 feet in width, with an alley 2 feed 

 in width between each, throwing the soil from 

 the alleys on to the beds, which may then be left 

 until next month before planting. Mark the 

 position of each bed by means of a neat but 

 stout Oak post. 



Horseradish. — The planting of Horseradish 

 should be done without delay. This vegetable 

 is frequently grown on the same site for many 

 years in succession in a secluded part of the 

 garden. It is, however, advisable to lift the 

 roots annually and store them in ashes or under 

 a north wall, to allow of the ground being dug 

 or trenched and manured, allowing it to remain 

 in a rough condition until the weather is suitable 

 for replanting. Select straight roots with their 

 crowns undamaged, and plant with a dibber in 

 rows made 1 foot apart, allowing the me dis- 

 tance between the roots in the rows. Bury the 

 crowns about 6 inches below the surface. After 

 planting, little other attention will be needed 

 beyond keeping the crop free from weeds. Where 

 the bed is of fairly large dimensions, one-half 

 may be treated as advised in alternate years. 



Tomatos. — A sowing of Tomatos may bo 

 made of varieties suitable for furnishing the 

 main crop under glass and for fruiting out-of- 

 doors. Sow the seeds thinly, as advised in 

 the case of earlier sowings, selecting varieties 

 that set their fruits freely and crop abundantly. 

 For outside culture, Sunrise and Lyfc's Early 

 Gem may be recommended. Plants in fruit will 

 be benefited by slight top-dressings composed of 

 equal parts fine, loamy soil and patent manures. 

 Avoid over-watering, or the fruits may split. 

 Pot on, as necessary, plants intended for suc- 

 cessional fruiting. Others in pots in which 

 they will fruit will need attention in training 

 occasionally : keep the leading growth straight, 

 and remove all side growths. Afford ventila- 

 tion on all favourable occasions, and maintain a- 

 warm, fairly dry atmosphere. 



Cucumbers. — Make another sowing of Cu- 

 cumbers and raise the plants in a brisk heat. 

 Remove the fruits from the earliest plants as 

 soon as they are large enough for consumption, 

 so that the energies of the plant are not over- 

 taxed. Syringe the foliage with warm water fre- 

 quently, and damp the paths and bare spaces of 

 the house late in the evening. Place thin layers 

 of fresh soil as top-dressings to encourage root 

 action, and see that the roots do not suffer for 

 want of water. Plants in pots that are growing 

 freely must be watered carefully, and, when 

 rooting freely, afforded occasional supplies of 

 diluted liquid manure made from farmyard 

 dung. 



French Beans. — Plants of French Bears in 

 bearing should be examined twice weekly, with 

 a view to removing any pods that are large 

 enough for use. If the beans are not required 

 for immediate consumption they may be tied in 

 small bunches, and the stalks immersed for a 

 little way in water or wet silver-sand. By this 

 means they may be kept fresh for a number of 

 days. Give the plants an abundance of water 

 when thev are fruiting freely, and liquid manure 

 at frequent intervals. Beans when being forced 

 need a light position and an intermediate tem- 

 perature with plenty of moisture, including fre- 

 quent syringings to keep the foliage free from 

 red spider. Later batches of plants should be 

 top-dressed as necessary, and the shoots afforded 

 supports. 



