April 5, 1893.] 



Garden and Forest. 



157 



belongs to the same order as the Boronias. It thrives under the 

 same treatment, but is somewhat more difficult to root, prob- 

 ably because the branches are slightly pubescent ; it is fre- 

 quently the case that woolly-leaved or woolly-branched plants 

 are more difficult to strike from cuttings than are smooth- 

 leaved and smooth-stemmed plants. E. buxifolius has small 

 ovate leaves of dark green color, and through the late winter 

 and early spring produces a great number of small pinkish 

 flowers from the axils of the leaves. In habit this plant is 

 dwarf and bushy ; it is of comparatively slow growth and will 

 not soon become too large for a small greenhouse. 



The Acacias also include some of the most graceful of 

 spring-flowering plants, and as hard pruning after the flow- 

 ering season is good practice in their cultivation, it is not hard 

 to keep these admirable plants within convenient size. The 

 species of cool-house Acacias, of which there are many, are 

 the most useful and also among the easiest plants to cultivate. 

 They luxuriate in sandy peat-soil, but with some of the com- 

 moner species, as A. dealbata and A. pubescens, even this is 

 not absolutely essential, a light open loam answering the pur- 

 pose very well. After having bloomed they should be cut 

 back quite severely, and then encouraged into new growth. 

 During the summer they require to be plunged outdoors, and 

 the lath shelter already spoken of is also quite beneficial to 

 these plants. This course of treatment produces strong, well- 

 ripened growth that may be depended on to give a good crop 

 of flowers during the following winter and spring. 



Among the most satisfactory species for general use are A. 

 Drummondii, A. dealbata, A. pubescens, A. Riceana, A. ar- 

 mata and A. lineata, these presenting such distinct character- 

 istics among them as to show quite plainly how many-formed 

 this genus is, and also how beautiful. Seeds of some species 

 of Acacias may be had from the leading seedsmen, but they 

 are usually propagated from cuttings ; these require to be 

 planted firmly in sand or sandy peat, and to have slight bottom 

 heat ; they should also be kept rather close until rooted, provid- 

 ing always that sufficient ventilation is given to prevent damp- 



Holmesburg, Pa. *^. ^- lapLin. 



City Gardening-. 



THIS seems the proper time to talk over the possibilities of 

 city gardening, while the rising sun is stirring the fever in 

 every one who has any gardening blood in his veins. In spite 

 of the annual exodus from our cities, they are by no means de- 

 serted in summer. Among the permanent residents there are 

 large numbers of flower lovers whose attention should be 

 turned to the pleasure to be derived from simple expedients 

 which will not only be satisfactcrry to the owner, but a continual 

 pleasure to the community. This brings us to the point that 

 for the average city dweller, window or balcony gardening is 

 in all respects the most satisfactory, as the window-sill is often 

 the only available place for growing flowers. For some reason 

 this form of gardening does not seem to grow in popularity in 

 New York, though one often sees behind the glass, or on the 

 window-ledges, potted plants and flowers, proving that the 

 taste is there and only waits development. This scarcity of 

 window-boxes is striking, for it seems to me, after some obser- 

 vation, that mankind, or, perhaps, womankind, generally, has 

 an inherent fondness for growing plants in boxes and unnat- 

 ural conditions. In walking or driving through the country, 

 one who observes gardens must notice that a large, if not the 

 largest, portion of the cultivation of flowers is carried on in 

 elevated boxes, pans and the like, even when there is availa- 

 ble land by the acre. One often wishes that these boxes could 

 be transferred to the ledges of city windows to brighten the 

 dreary streets. There is a great field here for a concerted 

 effort. Fancy the effect of a city block lighted up by a display 

 of well-grown plants in all the available windows. Certainly 

 the means are simple and the expense not great; in fact, a 

 mere trifle for the effect which could be produced, for the 

 plants best adapted for the purpose are the commonest and 

 the cheapest, and the boxes are a very minor consideration. 

 A street-garden is not tlie place for dainty effects, which would 

 be dwarfed by the surroundings. Here we want gay, showy 

 flowers and foliage and broad effects. The window-garden is 

 one where we can safely give way to our inherent love for bar- 

 baric color and gay arrangements. 



There are numerous varieties of boxes on sale, but as these 

 are seldom of the measurements desired, it will be usually ne- 

 cessary to have them made to order. I have tried tile boxes, 

 lined with zinc, and those made of iron, both of which are ne- 

 cessarily heavy, and on the whole I prefer a plain wooden box, 

 simply constructed, of chestiuit or walnut. This should be 

 about eight inches deep, of the length desired and as wide as 



the ledge will admit, with simple brackets to support a slight 

 projection. This box should be securely nailed together. 

 When it is to occupy a position in full sunlight a partition 

 should be put in lengthwise in the front part ot the box, leav- 

 gin an air space of, say, half an inch between this and the front 

 to keep the plant roots as cool as possible. By tacking a strip of 

 oilcloth of some light-colored tile pattern arountl the box and 

 finishing with moulding at the edges, one can produce a box as 

 effective at a distance as the highest-priced article. A good 

 effect can also be secured by using lincustra and bronzing or 

 painting it tastefully — I trust none of the readers of Garden 

 AND Forest paint their boxes and tubs a fiery scarlet. 



The boxes should have about three inches of broken char- 

 coal for drainage, over which there should be a thin slice of 

 sod, grass-side down, to keep the soil from washing through. 

 There should be a few holes bored in each end of the box near 

 the bottom to insure against excess of moistine from rains or 

 overwatering. The soil should be rich, but open ; good pot- 

 ting-soil, in short. The care will depend not only on the ex- 

 posure, but, of course, on the various plants grown. A mulch 

 of some kind is an advantage, Cocoanut-fibre, as odorless, be- 

 ing the best. Success will usually depend very much on care- 

 ful watering, especially when plants requiring very diverse 

 treatment in this respect are grown in the same box. If Nas- 

 turtiums or other plants requiring somewhat dry treatment are 

 grown with those needing more frequent watering, an addition 

 of some sifted sphagnum to the soil in which the latter are 

 plunged will be helpful in obviating the necessity for frequent 

 irrigation. For a sunny window a very bright and striking ef- 

 fect can be produced by a row of Nasturtiums (Tropaeolum 

 major), backed by a mass of Madam Pollock Geraniums. 

 Any of the scarlet-flowered Zonale Geraniums are excellent in 

 such a position if care is taken to select the summer-flowering 

 ones. With the Nasturtiums should be grown a row of the 

 variegated Gill-over-the-ground(Cylechoma) to cover the base 

 of the Nasturtium-vines should they become bare. A well- 

 grown box so planted would attract attention from the most 

 careless observer. Perhaps frequent boxes of this character 

 would be rather dazzling in a quiet city street, but there are 

 numerous variations which will occur to every one familiar 

 with flowers. In selecting plants for such positions preference 

 should be given, as far as possible, to those with smooth 

 foliage which will not collect dust, and are readily cleansed by 

 showering. The best effect is usually secured by a very hm- 

 ited variety of plants. Of course, the desirable plants for boxes 

 will vary according to the exposure. Plants will not flower in 

 the absence of all sunlight, and in shady positions effects must 

 be produced from plants with variegated, glaucous and silvery 

 foliage. Vines are of the first importance in window-boxes, 

 giving a touch of vivacity as they sway to every passing breeze. 

 A beautiful effect can be produced by planting shallow trays, 

 to fit the inside of the boxes, very closely in the fall with bulbs 

 of Hyacinths or Narcissi, and bringing them out as they start 

 in the spring. Even in the winter it is possible to secure a 

 bright effect with small evergreens, such as Arbor-vitags. A 

 row of these is very pretty, and quite in harmony with the most 

 formal architecture. o- ;>. -- 



Elizabeth, N.J. /.A. Gerard. 



Correspondence. 



Cyclamens at the Columbian Exposition. 



To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — The exhibition of Cyclamens now in progress embraces 

 eleven competing collections. Besides American and English 

 firms, Vilmorin-Andrieux et Cie. represent France, and Haage 

 & Schmidt, Germany. About twenty-five hundred plants are 

 shown, the proceeds of sowings made from February 8th to 

 February i6th of last year. Enough more are coming on, and 

 are partially in flower, to more than double this number, but are 

 not placed in competition. The plants were, therefore, but 

 little more than a year from seed when the awards were made 

 ^t the beginning of March. They should be consiilered com- 

 mercially as well as aesthetically in passing u|5on their merits. 

 Mr. Thorpe, who has managed their cultivation so well, and 

 whose experience entitles his opinion to weight, considers 

 plants of this ag? profitable to sell at about half the price re- 

 quired for those started in late summeror autumn and c;irried 

 over to the second winter or spring. Such plants would be 

 larger and bear a greater number of flowers, but the higher 

 price would hardly compensate the grower for the increased 

 cost of cultivation. The plants here are now accommodated 

 by four-inch pots, and display from six to twenty Mowers in good 

 condition at once, ten or twelve being a common number. 



