184 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
{ September 5, 1878. 
some of these also have attractive flowers—notably the Cannas, 
which are unusually luxuriant and fine. 
Four distinct kinds of garden embellishment are well 
represented in this park—namely, mixed borders, which are 
almost always attractive; flower-bed massing with Geraniums 
and kindred flowers—very gay for a time, but transient, this 
year very transient; subtropical gardening, which is highly 
imposing ; and carpet bedding, which to the great majority 
of visitors is perhaps the most attractive of all modes of 
decoration. 
The mixed borders contained the first flowers of the year, 
and will yield the last. They are not herbaceous borders 
strictly, but include all sorts of flowers that will flourish in 
them, and are thus not merely interesting, but are gay. bright, 
and sweet. To take away these mixed borders would be to 
deprive the park of one of its chief charms, and certainly the 
most fragrant : there is, however, no fear of such a calamity, 
for each year the borders appear to be better than before, 
and it is evident they receive the attention that they so well 
merit, and for which they give such a satisfying return. No 
masses of flowers in the park surpass, if equal, the fine 
groups of Anemone japonica alba now flowering in the mixed 
orders. 
The bedding-out section (flowers) has this year been the 
east satisfactory of all. The plants were as fine as plants 
«ould be, and about 65,000 Geraniums alone were bedded-out, 
and proportionate numbers of Calceolarias, Ageratums, and 
‘Lobelias. These were gay, very gay, for about a month, but 
“the late rains have despoiled them of their beauty. A few of 
the best bedding Geraniums are John Gibbons, rich crimson 
scarlet, fine; Edward Sutton, scarlet, very good; Mrs. Lan- 
«caster, perhaps the best pink; Lady Sheffield, pink, fine; 
Capt. Harrison, scarlet: Mrs. Russell Gurney, scarlet, white 
eye; and Miss Wakefield, cerise scarlet, fine truss. The best 
silver-edging Geranium is Princess Alexandra, and the best 
dwarf golden bicolor is Earl Rosslyn. The best Lobelias are 
Ebor, very dark, dwarf, and rich ; and Kaiser Wilhelm, stronger 
-grower, fine for large beds. 
In striking contrast to the flower beds referred to are the 
: stately and commanding groups of subtropical plants. Some 
-of the beds of these are now splendid, and equally so are the 
isolated specimens on the lawns of Musas, Palms, Aloes, «c., 
while the Fern dell and vista are quite charming. Perhaps 
the finest bed in the park is a large oblong planted with Canna 
Van Houttei, edged with Amaranthus melancholicus ruber 
mixed with Abutilon niveum variegatum, and margined with 
Dactylis glomerata variegata. The bed is raised above the 
‘level of the lawn, and the Dactylis droops down the slope like 
a fountain of silver. The mixture of the Abutilon and Ama- 
ranthus, too, is strikingly effective, and associates well with 
the rich mass of Cannas which occupy the centre of the bed. 
C. Yan Houttei has purplish bronze fohage and produces its 
‘bright crimson-scarlet flowers freely. It is one of the most 
effective of the dark-foliaged varieties for large beds. A few 
other of the more useful of the Cannas may be appropriately 
noticed here. The old green-leaved variety, C. Annei, is one 
of the most luxuriant in growth of all, and is represented by 
grand masses 8 feet high; it has small pale yellow flowers. 
Much finer as regards flowers, indeed the best of/the yellow- 
flowering varieties, is C. Annei grandiflora, the flowers of which 
are very large and bright. The best green-leaved variety of 
moderate growth is perhaps C. peruviana, and the richest 
dark-leayed sort is Adrian Robinii; this has remarkably rich 
foliage, and will probably be more extensively grown in future. 
C. Prince Imperial is perhaps the best of the dwarf-growing 
varieties. The sorts named all possess merit, and are well 
adapted to the various positions in which Cannas are grown. 
Another grand bed in this section is planted with Polhymnia 
grandis; the plants are unusually luxuriant, and show 
plainly that this is one of the finest subtropical plants in 
cultivation. Wigandia caracasana has an undergrowth of ya- 
riegated Veronicas, crimson Lantanas, and Plumbago capensis 
—both stately and pretty. Of a totally different character is 
a bed of Buonaparteas, fine specimen plants, one of them flow- 
ering; each plant having a green carpet of Sedum lydium, 
the general groundwork of the bed being of Golden Chickweed. 
Another bed of the same nature is planted with tall Cor- 
dylines, having a groundwork of Ivesine Lindeni intermixed 
with Gnaphalium lanatum, and a belt of Chamzpuce diacantha 
in a carpet of Sedum glaucum, the bed haying a margin of 
Alternantheras and Echevyeria glauca metallica. Totally dif- 
ferent, again, and one of the most pleasing beds in the park— 
one which combines elegance with brilliancy in a remarkable 
degree, is a raised bed of Tuberous Begonias dotted thinly 
with Jacaranda mimosefolia. The Begonias are laden with 
flowers, and their bright colours shine attractively through the 
graceful foliage of the Jacaranda. These Begonias evidently 
Tequire a somewhat raised position, yet sheltered, to display 
them to advantage. Another Begonia flowering freely in 
association with fine-foliaged plants is B. ricinifolia ; it has 
leaves, as its name suggests, almost exactly resembling those of 
the Castor-oil Plant, and flowers not unlike those of B. manicata 
but larger. Another bed near contains Eurya latifolia and 
Fuchsia Sunray as a groundwork, but not closely pegged, and 
a canopy of Acacia lophantha: it is very chaste. Fuchsia 
Golden Treasure is the best of the yellow-foliaged varieties, 
and affords a cheerful belt to such plants as Ricinuses. Can- 
nabis gigantea, Ferdinandias, Solanums, Grevilleas, and Fituses 
are represented, and the distinct Polygonum Sieboldi has a 
stately yet graceful appearance : a newer variety, P. sachali- 
nense, has larger foliage, but is not more generally attractive 
than the old favourite. A bed containing healthy and well- 
coloured plants of Pandanus Veitchii attracts notice, as also 
does a fine group of Brugmansias with pendant trumpet-shaped 
flowers; and another group, totally dissimilar, of the Coral 
Plant Erythrina Crista-galli. 
“Fern Hollow” is every year one of the most admired 
portions of the park. The most striking plant this year is a 
splendid specimen of Pritchardia pacifica, than which a finer 
example is seldom seen at exhibitions. Another conspicuous 
plant under the Tree Ferns is a massive specimen of Pothos 
acaulis, which in the distance resembles a huge Bird’s-nest 
Fern. In the background are large Philodendrons, Bananas, 
Cycads, &c.; trained to the trunks of the trees is Monstera 
deliciosa, and in the foreground stumps covered with Platy- 
ceriums produce an unique effect. The long vista opposite 
has a similarly cool and refreshing appearance, the smooth 
undulated lawn and banks being overshadowed with the 
fronds of Palms and Ferns, resembling a tropical forest scene 
in miniature. 
Many isolated specimen plants dotted on the lawns must be 
passed, but one demands notice—a grand example of the 
Abyssinian Banana, Musa ensete. This is the terminal plant 
of one of the picturesque nooks with which the park abounds. 
This nook, near the Fern and Palm groups alluded to, is 
flanked by fine masses of Cannas edged with Funkias; but the 
terminal plant is the chief object. The principal leaves in- 
cluding footstalk measured a few weeks ago 11 feet 6 inches 
in length ; they are enhanced in beauty by their deep red mid- 
ribs. It is feared that this imposing plant has grown too 
large for its winter quarters, which cannot but be regretted. It 
is such plants as these that distinguish the London parks from 
the majority of private gardens, and it would be well if the 
Government could feel justified in providing structures suitable 
for preserving such valuable specimens. The admirable manner 
in which all the parks are managed, the suggestions they 
afford, and the lessons they teach in decorative art, also the 
real enjoyment they contribute to thousands of visitors from 
all parts of the country, are reasons why all the aids possible 
should be afforded not only to sustain but to increase the 
fame and prestige of these important public gardens. 
The carpet beds yet remain to be noticed. The notice must 
be brief, because it is next to impossible to render the appear- 
ance of the beds intelligible without giving diagrams of every 
bed. It is noticeable that blue Lobelias;are quite dispensed 
with in carpet-bedding designs. They are too uncertain in 
growth to be relied on, and they are only in beauty during a 
limited period; for this reason no flowering plants are em- 
ployed in carpet beds, nor none are needed. Beds of plain 
outline are the most suitable for this mode of embellishment, 
such as circles and oblongs, beds of fantastic shape not permit- 
ting designs being well displayed in them. In this style of bed- 
ding a creat effect can be made with a few varieties of plants, 
Thus the largest carpet beds in this park are occupied with 
Golden Feather and Alternanthera amcena arranged somewhat 
after the pattern of a Turkey carpet, and the combination of 
these two colours is highly effective. The beds have an edging 
of Antennaria tomentosa margined with Sedum acre elegans. 
A round bed has central mass of Alternanthera amcena, narrow 
scrolls of Golden Feather enclosing masses of Alternanthera 
amcena, the angles and edge being occupied with Leucophyton 
Brownii margined with Sedum acre elegans. Another circular 
bed has a central diamond of Alternanthera paronychyoides 
major; four designs of Alternanthera amcena enclosed with 
