June 1, 1912.] 



THE GARDENERS 1 CH ROM CLE. 



359 



THE 



#iiri)eiters'CbrotticIc 



No. 1,327.— SATURDAY, June I, 1912. 



quantity, and then for 20 hours to the full 

 dose. In describing the results, we need 

 not distinguish between the two lots of 

 etherised plants beyond saying that the 

 more gradual treatment produced slightly 

 better results. The etherised plants were 

 placed in heated frames, with the non- 

 etherised Strawberries, on November 27 

 and November 28. When the plants 

 show r ed signs of flowering, they were 

 brought into the forcing house and sub- 



FLORISTS' FLOWERS. 



THE HERBACEOUS CALCEOLARIA. 



■ 



Few greenhouse plants have been more im- 

 proved during recent years than the herbaceous 

 Calceolaria, both with respect to the constitution 

 of the plant and the beauty of the flowers. No 

 plant thrives better in a cool house, though no 

 subject is quicker in resenting neglect or careless 

 treatment. The first week in June is a suitable 

 time to sow the seed, whilst a second sowing 

 made during the last week of that month will 



The compost 



jected co a temperature of 15° C. (59° F.), e ^T^™*^ 

 which temperature was raised gradually, 



CONTENTS. 



Books, notices of— 

 Annuals, Hardy and 

 Half-Hardy 



Chalk-loving plants ... 



Chelsea gardens, reno- 

 vation of the 



Delhi, gardening at 



Ech umc. ndicans 



F oasts' flowers — 

 The herbaceous Cal- 

 ceo'aria 



Forest trees, exotic 



Hoya bella 



International Horticul- 

 tural E>hibition (Sup- 

 plementary pages) 



Jamesia americana 



Kevv Guild annual meet- 

 ing and dinner 



Manna 



Mushrooms in boxes ... 



Primula Knuthiana 



Rhodode ndron Fal- 

 coneri ... 



Rosary, the — 

 Cultural notes for 



June 



Roses under glass ... 



359 

 367 



366 

 366 

 368 



359 

 367 

 368 



367 



366 

 366 

 361 

 366 



.. 367 



360 

 360 



Rhododendrons at Leo- 

 nardslee, Sussex 



Saxifraga, a hybrid 



Science, horticultural, 

 1866 1912 



Societies — 



Bath & W. of England 



Agricultural 

 British Gardeners* 



Association 



Horticultural Club ... 

 Manchester and North 

 of England Orchid- 

 National Gladiolus ... 

 Royal Horticultural .. 

 (Scientific Committee) 



Strawberries, etherisa- 

 tion and the forcing of 



Strawberries, forcing ... 



Veitch, Sir Harry J. ... 



Week's work, the — 

 Apiary, the ... — 

 Flower gai den, the — 



Fruits under glass 



861 

 367 



370 



370 

 368 



369 

 369 

 866 

 S68 



359 

 367 

 866 



863 

 362 

 362 



used at all siages should be of a rich natur 

 one part of finely-sifted soil to half the quantity 

 of leaf-mould, with sufficient silver sand to make 

 the whole perfectly porous is suitable. Prepaie 

 a clean seed pan, well furnish it with crocks for 

 drainage purposes; and fill the remaning space 

 with the compost, making it moderately firm. 

 If the soil is moist when mixed it will riot need 

 watering. The seed, being fine, requires care- 

 ful handling; it should be sown thinly and 

 covered with a mere dusting of very fine earth. 

 Place a sheet of glass over the pan and stand 

 the latter in a suitable place, such as a cool, 

 moist vinery, for the seed to germinate. After 



The fruits of etherised plants began to a little more than a week the seeds appear 



through the soil, at which stage the glass should 

 be removed and the pan placed in a lighter posi- 



As 



first to 65° F., and later to 68° F. 



The difference in time of flowering be- 

 tween the etherised and unetherised 

 plants was striking. Thus, on January 8, 

 213 of the 300 etherised plants were show- 

 364 ing flower-buds ; whereas only 33 of the 300 



unetherised plants were in a similar con- 

 dition. Of the etherised Strawberries, 

 238 flowered and 62 failed to flower; 



_ 



whereas, of the unetherised plants, the 

 corresponding numbers were 221 and 76. 



swell on February 21 ; whilst those of the 



non-etherised plants did not begin to swell * "7™ ana tne pan ptacea mb j^^~ 



till March 6 Finally, the etherised Uon ' but shaded from a11 direct ' nMhine ' 

 plants bore ripe fruits on March 15-17 ; 

 whereas no fruits were ripe on the un- 



Hardy fruit garden, the 362 etherised plants till 15 days later. 



Kitchen gaiden, the... 

 Orchid houses, the — 

 Plants under glass ... 



862 

 363 

 363 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 



Calceolaria Veitchii ~- Supp. xxii 



Cherry Governor Wood Supp. xxvni 



Chinese plants shown by Hon. Vicary Gibbs Supp. xxvi 



Deutzia Veitchii Supp. xix 



Echiura candicans • • — 368 



Flowering plants, Messrs. Sutton and Sons' group 

 of. Supp. xxix 



Fruit exhibited by His'Majesty the King... Snpp. xxvii 



Fruit shewn by L. de Rothschild, Esq Supp. xxix 



Iris sqca'ens var. " Nibelungen M Supp. xx 



Japanese garden arranged by Messrs. Jas. Carter and 

 Co. -. — Supp. xxiv 



M Supp. xxi 



- Supp. xxv 



Supp. xxv 



Supp. xviii 

 Supp. xxv 

 Supp. xxx 



Lilium davuricum var. luteum 



Miltonia Jules Hye.de Crom 



Odontioda Queen Mary .^ 



Orange Trees shown by Messrs, Jas. Veitch & Sons 



Supp. xxxi 



Orchids shown by Sir Geo. Holford 



Oxalis enneaphylla var. rosea ... .« — 



Plum Ea^ly Transparent Gage 



Primula Knuthiana (coloured Supplementary Illustra 



tion) 

 Rhododendron Aucklandii, 361 ; R. Loderi 



Saxifnga, a hybrid — 



Strawberry King George V* .~ ... — 



Sweet Pea Melba ^. .- 



Vegetables exhibited by Hon. Vicary Gibbs 

 Veitch, Sir Harry J., portrait of ... 



— 360 



J. 867 



Supp. xxviii 



Supp. xxiii 



Supp. xxxii 



.. ... 365 



M. Bultel makes no mention in the ac- 

 count which he gives of his experiments 

 (Journal de la Soc. Nat. d' Horticulture 

 de France, April, 1912) of the respective 

 yields obtained from the two crops. We 

 are bound, therefore, to infer that that 

 from the etherised lot of plants was at 

 least equal to that from the plants not 

 subjected to this treatment. 



Assuming that the yield is satisfactory, 

 it certainly seems probable that, as M. 

 Bultel observes, etherisation may prove 

 profitable to those growers who desire very 

 early crops, particularly in years when, 

 owing to the absence of cold autumn 

 weather, the plants have not "ripened" 

 well. We hope that more experiments of 

 this kind will be undertaken, and would 

 commend the subject to the notice of those 

 in this country who have facilities for this 

 kind of experimental work. 



soon as the second Jeat appears me seeunngs 

 should be pricked out at a distance of about 

 2 inches apart ; in many places it is the rule 

 to throw the smallest plants away, but these 

 small plants often furnish the most charming 

 colours. Although they are very small at first, 

 they eventually become robust. As soon as they 

 are ready for potting, small pots should be got in 

 readiness : the receptacles must be perfectly 

 clean and have a few small crocks covered by 

 clean moss for drainage. Use a compost similar 

 to that described above, but make sure that it be 

 porous, as an open soil is one of the essentials to 



Lift the 



plants 



soil as possible at the 

 moderate firmness, and make the soil 



carefully, retaining 



roots. Pot 



ETHERISATION AND THE 

 FORCING OF STRAWBERRIES- 



OR some years past M. M. G. Bultel 

 has been experimenting on the value 

 of etherisation for forcing early 

 Strawberries. His earlier experiments, 

 published in 1906, appeared to show r that 

 the method is capable of commercial ap- 

 plication, and this conclusion is con- 

 firmed by the results of experiments 

 carried out on a more extended scale dur- 

 ing the present year. In the latter experi- 

 ments, M. Bultel used 600 plants of the 

 variety Vicomtesse Hericart de Thury, all 

 of which plants were obtained from layers 

 taken at the same time, and grown under 

 precisely similar conditions. Of the 600 

 Pot plants, 300 were placed in a heated 

 frame on November 25, and the other 300 



'< 



NOTICES OF BOOKS 



A New Work on Annuals.* 



This is the 12th volume of the M Present-day 

 Gardening " series, and even a cursory glance is 

 sufficient to make one wonder how it could be 

 produced at the price, considering the beauty of 

 the illustrations, and comparing the work with 

 one on the same subject which was published 

 not long ago at a price four times as high. ^ 



The first chapter is devoted to a brief disser- 

 tation on the value of annuals, and the second 

 to a description of their cultivation. The re- 

 mainder of the book is occupied by a review of 

 the best varieties in cultivation, with short notes 

 on the mode of culture required by each. The 

 lists are up-to-date and reliable, though I was 

 surprised not to find Silene Armeria— an old 

 favourite of mine, commonly neglected. 



The volume contains an exhaustive index, 



were ^etherised on that date. One hun- which adds much to its value as a work of re- 

 ared and fifty of the latter were treated ference. B. P. Brothyston. 



tor 48 hours with a full dose of ether (400 , AnnH tl !s, Hardy and Half- Hardy, ,by Charles iH. Curtis 



ieht coloured pla.es, price Is. 6d. Present-day 



success. 



as much 



with moderate firmness, 

 slightly higher in -the centre. Place the plants 

 in a cold frame, affording shade whenever neces- 

 sary and never allowing the plants to suffer in 

 the least for want of water. On hot days fre- 

 quent light syringings with soft water should be 

 afforded, and fresh air should be admitted freely 

 at all times. Aphis must be checked by frequent 

 light fumigating with tobacco paper. About 

 September the plants will be ready for potting 

 again, and pots must be selected according to the 

 size of the plants. Avoid over-potting at this 

 stage, as the plants will remain in these recep- 

 tacles over the winter. As soon as the nights be- 

 gin to be chilly, the plants should be removed to 

 a cool pit or greenhouse, but wherever they are 

 placed they must have plenty of light and air, the 

 more the better. Whilst the temperature can be 

 maintained at 45° to 55°, no fire-heat is neces- 

 sary ; extremes of temperatures must be guarded 

 against, and a dry atmosphere, which is very in- 

 jurious to the plants, must be avoided. Watering 

 should be done carefully during the dull months, 

 and insects must be kept in check by light fumi- 

 gating on calm nights. At the latter part of Feb- 

 ruary the plants should be transferred to their 

 flowering pots. The compost should be richer 

 than before, a liberal amount of plant fertiliser 

 should be added, also a sprinkling of soot, and 

 the whole made quite firm yet perfectly porous. 

 The size of the pots should vary according to the 

 size of the plants; those from 6 to 9 inches 

 diameter are most suitable. The plants should 

 be given every encouragement to grow. Provide 

 plenty of fresh air, but avoid draughts and 

 overcrowding. Use the syringe freely on warm 

 days, and when the pots are filled with roots 

 liquid manure may be afforded at every alternate 

 watering. Tie the shoots before the flowe 3 



grams per cubic metre), and the remaining f^!t 



150 were exposed for 40 hours to half this 



SS^ SiK* edited by R. Hooper Pearson. (London 

 T. C. & E. C. Jack.) 



and when the blossoms have expand* 1 



C. Towncn 



open, 



afford the roots clear water only. 



