424 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ November 16, 1876. 



I have only tried to give your readers the benefits of my 

 own experience in rny own garden, and can assure " Age" I 

 have had no interest whatever in recommending Mr. Pearson's 

 strain other than by having found by careful selection, carried 

 on now for many years, that they have succeeded better than 

 any others in my garden, and nearly all gardeners and ama- 

 teurs who have seen them have decided the same. I have no 

 wish, however, to prejudice in any way the growers of other 

 sorts of established reputation, and for pot culture I admire 

 many of Dr. Denny's strain immensely, as well as those of 

 some other raisers. — C. P. P. 



WINTER BEDDING. 



The objection which has been often urged against the system 

 of summer bedding which has now enjoyed an innings of more 

 than twenty years — namely, that it leaves the ground bare for 

 six months of the year — should be no objection at all; the 

 ground need not necessarily be bare for one day. The objec- 

 tion is obviated at once by covering the ground with spring- 

 flowering plants, against which, however, still graver objec- 

 tions may be urged — we mean, against spring bedding pure 

 and simple — the chief of which is that in most seasons it has 

 a tendency to become more properly early summer bedding 

 and no spring decoration at all, the plantE being in their prime 

 of bloom just when the summer bedding ought to be in hand ; 

 the ground in fact should have been for Eome time under pre- 

 paration for those to Eecure a successful growth and display. 

 Another terious objection to the popular spiing bedding is that 

 although the ground be covered with the spring plants they do 

 present but a dreary appearance the whole of the winter; beds 

 with bulbs only are nothing better than beds simply dug over, 

 and the rest monotonous until the flowering period commences. 

 And now supposing our present flower beds entirely given up 

 to choice herbaceous plants in summer, which of course live 

 in the ground in winter, the same objection of dreary mono- 

 tony would exist. 



Now we know there is a remedy for all these objections, if it 

 were only generally practised more or less according to the 

 capabilities of different gardens, by a liberal use of the many 

 elegant and various-coloured dwarf shrubs now available for 

 that purpose. Although winter bedding with dwarf shrubs is 

 nearly as old as summer bedding, it does seem strange that it 

 is not more generally adopted. Everybody down to the railway 

 porter has their summer beds gay with the latest Geraniums ; 

 and although we should not expect him to indulge in coloured 

 shrubs, we should expect to see the gaunt flower beds about a 

 gentleman's residence made presentable in winter. 



We should not propose that winter bedding be done entirely 

 with shrubs ; it would be ridiculous to ignore any one of the 

 spring-flowering plants now in use ; we rather think that their 

 beauty would be enhanced by being judiciously arranged with 

 the shrubs, and the effect of the whole eked cut by largely 

 pressing the hardy carpeting plants into the service as em- 

 broidery or edging. Combinations of these three classes of 

 plants can be made exceedingly effective even in midwinter, 

 the more striking and cheerful effects being dependant on the 

 shrubs. Nothing will be more convincing of the cheerful effects 

 which can be produced in winter by shrubs alone, than a walk 

 through a well-stocked and well-appointed nursery where the 

 various Ehrubs are grown in large groups and quarters. The 

 colours among Euonymuses alone are very varied and striking 

 — from bright yellow in E. latifoiius aureus, through various 

 shades of yellow, silvery grey in argenteus elegantisBimus, and 

 nearly white in radicans variegatus. AmoEg Retinosporas are 

 also several effective shades of colour, the silvery grey of 

 squarrosa, red of ericoides, and yellow of plumosa aurea and 

 pisifera aurea. The forms and colours in Cupressus Law- 

 soniana are now become very various and distinct (colour is 

 ■what we have most to consider at present, from dense dark 

 green to light green and glaucous) : Waterer's variety of C. ar- 

 gt ntea, C. albo-variegata, and C. aurea variegata, and there are 

 yet other varieties of hoary grey colour after the manner of 

 the colouring of Thuja Vervseneana, which are exceedingly 

 well adapted for winter bedding. Boxes and Hollies furnish a 

 large variety of effective bedding shrubs in themselves. The 

 gold and Bilver varieties of Holly require no recommendation ; 

 they are not expensive in the young state, and one circumstance 

 in their favour is that they bear moving in April, if it be not 

 the very beBt month in which to move Hollies. It is not our 

 purpose to mention by name all the many plants fit for winter I 

 bedding — many more, we are aware, could be employed here I 



in the south than to the nftth of London ; but Ericas her- 

 bacea and vulgaris aurea deserva to be specially mentioned, 

 alBo the numerous varieties of Tineas and Ivies as being so 

 easily propagated at home. 



In massing beds for winter one or more varieties of shrubs 

 may be used for the centres, to be banded round by such of 

 the spring bedding plants as may be decided on for contrast, 

 such as MyoBotis, Arabis,Belvoir Castle Wallflowers, orPansies. 

 Or a bed may be filled entirely with shrubs, the centre of the 

 larger-growing sorts banded by Heaths, Euonymuses, Ivies of 

 any dwarf trailing sort, mixing the dwarfer shrubs alternately 

 with Hyacinths, Tulips, or other spring bulbs, so that the 

 ground may not be at any time bare, and yet the effect of the- 

 bnlbs be eujoyed in spring. Large beds may still further be 

 embroidered by the different Saxifrages, such as hypnoides- 

 and other bright green sorts, or the white crusted sorts and 

 the different coloured Sedums. Daisies work well in with the 

 Sedums and Sempervivums, and when in flower look neat and 

 showy in rays and scollops round large beds. Daisies and 

 all the sweet Violets are making an early autumn effort at 

 bloom this season : even the Neapolitan Violet is as full of 

 bloom as if it were March ; that is, however, premature and 

 peculiar to the season — the dull days of December will check 

 them. 



The chief reason why winter bedding with shrubs 13 not 

 more largely carried out is probably the fear of the first ex- 

 pense. A large Btock of useful-sized plants would no doubt 

 involve a considerable outlay, and but few would launch into 

 that expense at once for a large garden. They are not exactly 

 the gardener's plants to be increased by thousands without any 

 apparent expense to the employer in a few months ; they may, 

 however, be as easily and readily propagated as bedding plants 

 with the proper means, though not so quickly grown into size^ 

 when once propagated they are not so fugitive as ordinary 

 bedders — they remain serviceable for years. Soma can be in- 

 creased by division very readily, such as Erica herbacea, Reti- 

 nospora ericoides, Yincas, Euonymus radicans, Ivy, various 

 sorts of low dwarf Rhododendrons, and even Thujas and 

 Cupressuses ; very many can be raised from cuttings under 

 hand-lights or in cold frames in autumn, such as all the broad- 

 leaved Euonymuses— in fact all the broad-leaved Japanese, 

 plants, as Aucubas, the Japanese Retinosporas, Thujas, Cy- 

 presses, and many of those softwooded shrubs, strike readily 

 from cuttings. The same amount of care which is required to 

 propagate many of the summer bedders will be equally success- 

 ful with these if a fair trial be given them. Shade from bright 

 sun, and the moisture of a cold frame with froEt excluded, are 

 the best conditions for success, inserting the cuttings firmly in 

 sandy peat. Variegated Hollies are often propagated in this 

 way, although grafting- is tho usual mode. The difficulties of 

 propagation are not so great as to prevent a satisfactory effort 

 being made with the view to so desirable a result as the acqui- 

 sition of a cheap and useful stock of winter bedders. When dwarf 

 shrubs are removed from the beds in spring, a cool moist situ- 

 ation should be devoted to them in which to grow them for 

 the Eummer. Any light sandy soil will suit them if not tco 

 much impregnated with manure ; in stiff clay soils they do not 

 generally do so well, and where such exists a piece of ground 

 must be prepared for them. The frequent removal keeps them 

 dwarf, and encourages a mass of roots close at home. No better 

 time could be chosen than October for moving in autumn, the 

 month when the work must be done ; and again in spring no 

 better time could be chosen than April, the month when the 

 same work must be done. We are aware that these matters of 

 soil will be a serious drawback with many. A dry draughty situ- 

 ation is also a difficulty not easily overcome ; an elevated inland 

 situation where the winter is severe, is unfavourable to the 

 cultivation of the better class of Japanese shrubs ; but to those 

 so situated we say there are plenty of subjects suitable for the 

 purpose, though the choioer must be avoided, and after all we 

 think even these are but few. — The Squire's Gaedeneh (in 

 The Gardener). 



MADRESFIELD COURT GRAPE CRACKING. 



I was much interested by the remarks on page 388 respecting 

 what is called the " besetting fault " of this superb Grape, and 

 of its alleged demerit of conveying this evil propensity to the- 

 scions of other varieties. From these conclusions of cur Irish 

 friend I decidedly differ. 



I have growing in the same hou^e several Vines of Madres- 

 field Court and Gros Colman. The former has finished its. 



