68 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 259. 



Cultural Department. 

 Black Hamburg Grapes in the Open Air. 



n^HE suggestion of Colonel Pearson (vol. v., p. 618), that the 

 -'■ European \'ine might be successful!)' grown in our Atlan- 

 tic states if protected from mildew and phylloxera, prompts me 

 to give my experience in growing these Grapes without pro- 

 tection, although this experience is limited, covering only the 

 year 1892. I have for several years grown the Black Hamburg 

 and the White Muscat of Alexandria in a small lean-to cold- 

 house with good success, and with little care. My vines are 

 now eighteen years old and quite large. A year ago part of 

 the sash became badly broken, leaving the growing vine fully 

 exposed to the weather ; in this condition I sprayed them with 

 Bordeaux mixture throughout the summer and succeeded in 

 retaining the foliage antl perfecting the fruit, as well as that on 

 the vines under the glass. 



Last spring I took the entire structure away and trained the 

 vines on a wire trellis about four feet high and sprayed them 

 frequently with the Bordeaux mixture, keeping them well 

 pinched back through the season, and the foliage remained 

 good till killed by frost. The fruit was as good as that grown 

 under glass — possibly a little later. 



My opinion is that this Grape can be grown successfully in 

 this latitude in the open air with the above treatment, and pos- 

 sibly a slight protection over the roots in the shape of a good 

 mulch of coarse manure through the winter. I think the vines 

 are hardy enough to stand our ordinary winter weather, and if 

 the mildew is kept away from the leaves so that they will be able 

 to perform their proper funcdons throughout the season, I 

 don't see why we can't succeed. Still, much more time must 

 be given to testing this, and experience from various sections 

 must be collected before we can speak with any positiveness 

 on this matter. 

 Newark, N. J. Charles L. Jones. 



Seasonable Notes. 



■X^^ORK in the indoor garden at this season is varied and 

 * ' interesting, and comprises, besides careful attention to 

 routine operations, such as heating, watering and ventilating, 

 preparation for next summer's outdoor display, the plans for 

 which should now be laid. In many amateur gardens the 

 available space for such preparation is decidedly limited, but, 

 however small the conservatory, a certain portion should be 

 set aside for a propagating frame. Something of this charac- 

 ter is almost indispensable where a variety of plants are 

 grown. A frame some four or five feet long, placed on the 

 side bench at the warmest end of the house, will afford proper 

 accommodation for many cuttings and seeds of tender plants, 

 and also provide the conditions for interesting experiments. 



For many stove-plants, and especially some species consid- 

 ered difficult to root, there is no better medium in which to 

 plant the cuttings than cocoa fibre. This material retains 

 moisture for a considerable period without becoming soured, 

 and at the same time is sufficiently porous to allow the bot- 

 tom-heat to penetrate it readily. Cocoa fibre can be purchased 

 by the barrel in most seed-stores, and may be either used in 

 bulk to form a cutting bed, or in store pots. It is also an excellent 

 material in which to plunge the pots or pans used for propa- 

 gating purposes. Cuttings of Ficus, Crotons, Aralias and 

 many other plants will root readily in it, providing some bot- 

 tom-heat is given, and a smaller percentage of cuttings will 

 fail than when they are planted in sand or soil. 



This is a suitable time to put in Croton cuttings to furnish 

 young stock for this year's outdoor bedding. To grow Crotons 

 rapidly, a high temperature and moist atmosphere are required, 

 seventy to seventy-five degrees at night being none too much, 

 though after such treatment it is necessary to harden off these 

 plants gradually before planting them out in June. The 

 Acalyphas are included among select bedding plants, and, 

 though nearly as tender as a Coleus, are much more effective. 

 A. musaicaand A. marginata are the most satisfactory sorts 

 for the purpose, and cuttings put in at this time will soon be- 

 come large enough to supply a second crop. 



The stock ofCannas may be considerably increased by start- 

 ing the roots in pots and afterward dividing them. In this way 

 a much greater display is possible than when the dry roots are 

 planted out in the garden. Canna-seeds should also be sown 

 quite early to secure strong plants. And as the seedlings vary 

 greatly, their development will interest the grower, though it 

 must be admitted that really improved varieties are few, a 

 Madame Crozy or Alphonse Bouvier only appearing at inter- 

 vals. In a batch of 150 seedlings raised by me only two were 

 found worthy of a second year's trial, though all the seeds were 



gathered from good varieties, many of which had been fer- 

 tilized with a view to their improvement. 



It is not too early to begin the propagation of Chrysanthe- 

 mums, and when the young plants are sufficiently established 

 they may be placed in cold frames until needed. Old plants of 

 Bouvardias from which the crop of bloom has been exhausted 

 should not be thrown away, but stored under the stages until 

 warm weather, when they should be planted outdoors for 

 summer flowering. The result will be a surprise to those who 

 have not tried this plan, there being a wealth of bloom all sum- 

 mer. The planting out of Bouvardias in a permanent bed in 

 the conservatory would give much satisfaction providing they 

 do not become infested with mealy-bug, to which they are 

 somewhat subject. 



Holmesburg, Pa. W. H. Tapltn. 



Notes from the Harvard Botanic Garden. 



IMPATIENS Hawkeri. — For pleasing brilliance of color there 

 is no flower, in my opinion, to match that of this soft-wooded 

 plant, and it blooms so freely and is so easily managed as to 

 be indispensable in a greenhouse of the smallest pretensions. 

 I. Hawkeri is yet much of a novelty in this country, and there 

 are only a few places in which it is cultivated to any extent. 

 This, however, is due to its comparatively recent introduction. 

 It was brought to England from the South Sea Islands by 

 Lieutenant Hawker, in 1886, and was subsequently distributed 

 among amateurs and commercial growers by Mr. William 

 Bull, of the King's Road Nurseries, London. It was warmly 

 welcomed by European horticulturists, and is still highly 

 valued beyond the water. The few who have seen it here are 

 also well pleased with it, and there is every reason to believe 

 that it will have a long run of popularity. It is a much- 

 branched plant, abundantly supplied with ovate, acuminate, 

 serrate leaves, which are opposite, or arranged in whorls of 

 three, and dark green, while the stems, branches and petioles 

 are of a dull red color. The flowers proceed, singly, from the 

 axils of the leaves, borne on long, slender pedicels. They are 

 quite flat when fully developed, nearly round in outline, and 

 about three inches in diameter. Larger flowers are by no 

 means rare, but the size here given is a fair average for well- 

 grown plants. The color, deep carmine, has a lustre that 

 baffles all description, and there is a hazy bluish tinge around 

 the white eye which gives a soft relief to the more dazzling 

 shade. The plant thrives best in an intermediate tempera- 

 ture, with shade in summer. Plants raised in early spring 

 bloom incessantly through the summer and early autumn 

 months, and they should be propagated later in the season to 

 secure a supply of flowers in winter and spring. I. Hawkeri 

 is easily increased by means of seeds and cuttings, but the 

 plants obtained from seeds are the most shapely and flo- 

 riferous. 



Jacobinia magnifica. — This is excellent among our winter- 

 flowering greenhouse things, and a plant of some rarity in 

 gardens. It is a native of Rio Janeiro, and was introduced in 

 1827. The plant is of dwarf and shrubby habit under proper 

 treatment, and the leaves are lanceolate, bright green in color,, 

 and from six to nine inches in length. The two-lipped flowers 

 are of a showy reddish purple color, and are borne in dense 

 clusters as long as the leaves, and from four to six inches in 

 diameter at the extremity of the branches. They are produced 

 very freely during the winter months, rendering the plant con- 

 spicuously useful at a time of great floral scarcity ; but, as is 

 the case with all members of the Acanthus family, to which J. 

 magnifica belongs, the flowers are of no account for cutting, 

 as they fall to pieces soon after being removed from the plant. 

 This is, perhaps, the reason that J. magnifica is so seldom cul- 

 tivated. For greenhouse decoration this plant will be found 

 eminently serviceable, and it is easily cultivated. It is best to 

 commence each year with young plants, discarding the old 

 ones when they cease flowering. Old plants are very often un- 

 satisfactory, and it is unwise to take risks where space and 

 time are limited. Cuttings taken early in spring root quickly 

 in sandy soil with the aid of a little bottom-heat. The plants 

 may then be placed in small pots, using any ordinary potting- 

 soil, and grown in a warm greenhouse until the latter part of 

 May, when, if the weather is then sufficiently mild, they should 

 be turned out and planted about two feet apart in tlie open 

 garden. Here, with a plentiful supply of water, they will make 

 good growth before the latter part of August, when they 

 should be taken up and potted in a light soil — three parts of 

 the first to one each of the latter. They should be kept 

 in a shady place and freely watered until they recover from 

 the effects of the change ; they may then be given full ex- 

 posure until late in September, or such time as the external 



