March 27, iSgS- 



Garden and Forest. 



127 



produced freely. The flesh must be sohd, the core perfectly 

 tender, seeds few, and there must be no seed cavity or toug-h 

 skin. The shape should be round, without depression at the 

 stem or blossom-end, and there should be no corrugation. 



Ignotum (the best of all), Dwarf Champion, Favorite, Beauty, 

 Trophy, Perfection. 



Turnip. — Small top and root, good-shaped bulb, rapidity of 

 growth, tender flesh and mild flavor. 



Early Snowball, Red-top Strap-leaf, Purple-top White Globe, 

 Golden Ball or Orange Jelly. 



BloomHeld, N. J. S. A. 



Flower Garden Notes. 



ALTERATIONS are needed in the garden that have sug- 

 gested themselves during the past season, and if, as often 

 happens, there was not time to make these in the early fall, 

 they should be started as soon as the sod is in workable con- 

 dition. The roots of plants and trees seem to begin tlieirwork 

 before the frost is really out of the ground, and certainly the 

 earlier plants are moved the more likely are they to make a 

 good display. 



Pseonies should be moved very early, especially if the roots 

 are to be divided. They are generally considered difficult to 

 transplant, but this is not true if they are moved early enough 

 and all the tubers taken up without damage, a sharp knife 

 being used to sever the parts near the buds, so that the'y may 

 not be injured. If these details are seen to, the plants will 

 flower as well during the succeeding summer as though they 

 had not been disturbed. The Tree Pajonies are not seen in 

 gardens as often as they deserve. They are perfectly hardy 

 with us ; they flower as freely as the herbaceous kinds, and 

 much earlier in the season before the arrival of the rose-bugs; 

 this is a great advantage, for it is difficult to think of the later 

 kinds without associating them with this troublesome pest. 

 The old Pasonia officinalis is also early-flowering, and belongs 

 to a different section, being, indeed, a true species, with sev- 

 eral varieties. The old original scarlet is a fine showy plant m 

 the border, coming in soon after P. tenuifolia. P. corallina is 

 a single- flowered early species with coral-red flowers. This 

 plant is rare in gardens, and is a native of Asia Minor. Another 

 good garden-plant is P. Wittmanniana, from the Caucasus, 

 with very distinct foliage, and single creamy white flowers 

 early in the season. P. corallina and P. Wittmanniana are 

 proving quite hardy here, and add much to the interest of the 

 garden early in the season, between the flowering of spring 

 bulbs and the majority of true herbaceous plants. Single- 

 flowered Pasonies are not often seen, partly on account of their 

 rarity in trade-lists, but their beauty is undisputed. P. albiflora 

 is more common, but is grown by few cultivators, though it is 

 a finfe companion for the above-named sorts, and is the parent 

 of the race of our numerous garden varieties. It is not com- 

 monly known that m California, and I think also in Oregon, a 

 Paeony is found growing wild. This Paeony, P. Browni, is not 

 a showy plant, and for this reason is but little known, but it is 

 a true Psony, indigenous to the United States. 



It is now proven that the Eremuri can be grown here as 

 easily as in Europe, and they are among the most noble of 

 hardy plants. We have three specimens established here, but 

 have thus far flowered only Eremurus robustus ; the others 

 will probably flower during the coming season. The long, 

 thick, fleshy roots of the Eremuruses are peculiar in their con- 

 struction ; they radiate from a central crown-bud and spread 

 in all directions, making it difficult to pack them safely. Our 

 roots came from Holland in good condition, and E. robustus 

 flowered the first summer after planting, as noted in Garden 

 AND Forest last year. The other two kinds are E. Himalaya- 

 cus and E. Olgae. We planted them in a situation that insured 

 dryness in the fall, so that the crowns shoifld ripen after flow- 

 ering. A thin covering of manure was spread over the soil in 

 fall as a mulch rather than as a protection. Eremurus-seeds 

 seem to be somewhat erratic in their germination. We sowed 

 all that matured as soon as they were ripe, and only two plants 

 have come up, while Mr. Endicott stated in Garden and 

 Forest some time since that seeds he sowed came up thickly 

 under the same treatment. Eremuri should be planted in the 

 fall, as the foliage dies down soon after the plants flower in 

 summer, and reappears very early in spring; it would, there- 

 fore, be unwise to disturb the roots in the spring unless this 

 cannot be avoided. 



The stock of hardy Pyrethrums is easily increased at this 

 time, or as soon as the young shoots appear above ground. 

 These may be taken off as low down as possible and the cut- 

 tings put in sand. They will root quickly and flower during 

 the coming summer as well as if they were left on the old 

 roots. Old clumps may also be divided, and then there are 



always some shoots that may be spared for use as cuttings. 

 For the best double kinds it is desirable to have a few reserve 

 plants, since the old clumps sometimes die out if left too long 

 in one place and the soil becomes exhausted. Propagation 

 cannot be done too soon after the shoots show above ground 

 in spring. Old plants of the Oriental Poppies must also be 

 moved at the first peeping of the shoots, as these are early- 

 flowering and strong-growing plants. They need rich soil and 

 fall planting, if this is possible. To propagate more Poppies, 

 as soon as the roots can be lifted they should be cut in pieces 

 an inch or two long and these should be placed in sand in a 

 warm house when they will sprout in a week or two. They 

 will make fine stock to flower next year if these young plants 

 are set out in May in good soil. Root-cuttings are the only 

 reliable means to reproduce any special variety, as from seed 

 scarcely any two will be alike. 



South Lancaster, Mass. £■ O. Orpct. 



Hints on Potting Orcliids. 



FOR potting material many good growers now use peat 

 alone, while others believe in a mixture of peat and sphag- 

 num, which has the advantage of retaining the moisture bet- 

 ter. As the sphagnum gets worn out sooner than peat, more 

 frequent shifting is needed, but, where this can conveniently 

 be done, tlie mixture is, no doubt, better than peat alone. In 

 either case the material should be broken up and well washed 

 to remove all eggs of snails and insects, then left to dry again 

 before using. Basinets are preferable to pots for most of the 

 more commonly grown species, such as Cattleyas, Dendro- 

 biums, Lselias, and, in short, all that require a plentiful supply 

 of air at the roots. For others, such as Cypripediums and 

 Odontoglossums, which require the roots kept rather cool, 

 pots or pans are the more suitable. In shifting, shake the 

 plants well out, and if they have suffered in any way from 

 stagnation the roots will need to be well washed, all decayed 

 root and parts should be cut away, and particular attention 

 should be paid to removing all dead matter from around 

 the eyes, so as to have them perfectly clear. Thorough drain- 

 age should always be given, and the addition of a few pieces 

 of charcoal above the crocks is very advantageous. In placing 

 the plants in the baskets or pots, see that they are set so that 

 the roots from the young growth to be made this year will 

 have plenty of room to enter the compost. If the plants are 

 placed in tlie centre without regard paid to this point when the 

 young growths have pushed their roots, they will not be found 

 in the basket or pot, but to be over the side of it. 



Where the plants have few or no roots it is a good plan to 

 tie a little peat or sphagnum around the base with a strip of 

 raffia ; this keeps them in shape and protects them when 

 being placed in position, and since firm potting is essential it 

 makes sure that the material is packed closely around them. 



Tarrytown. N. Y. William Scott. 



Chrysanthemums. 



THE arrival of new Chrysanthemums marks the beginning 

 of the busy season for the cultivator of these flowers. 

 The old varieties on hand, intended for specimen plants, will 

 be considerably in advance of these new sorts. Although we 

 try all new introductions which show any promise as specimen 

 plants, we do not rely on them, but rather on tested kinds. 

 Exhibitors, however, all things being equal, usually get most 

 credit for well-grown plants of striking novelties, especially in 

 the matter of color. Portia won a good deal of credit last sea- 

 son as an exquisite pink of two shades. lora, also, had many 

 admirers ; the delicate mauve flowers are composed of curled 

 petals, beautifully arranged. Clinton Chafant was another 

 novelty of exceptional value. Unfortunately, very little can be 

 gleaned from the catalogues concerning the value of novelties 

 as bush specimens. They are seldom tested as such, and, if at 

 all, in a very unsatisfactory way. One dealer wrote me that 

 varieties as specimen plants were profitless to handle, so gen- 

 erally has the rating been confined to the blooms as the final 

 test. ^ 



The tips should be taken from newly arrived plants, and, as 

 stated in a previous note, these often make the best plants, 

 and certainly the best specimen flowers. The plants should 

 be placed in the garden in May and treated in every way as 

 pot-grown plants are treated, giving them the benefit of care- 

 ful stopping, tying and watering during dry weather. If they 

 develop the foundation for good specimens by tlie middle of 

 August we lift them. We consider August the best time for 

 this work, and have never had the loss of foliage so much 

 complained of when the plants are lifted later. 



We make only three stages in the potting of our plants. 



