May 15, 1895.] 



Garden and Forest. 



197 



gradually hardened, and finally placed out-of-doors about the 

 end of May. In the mean time, we continue stopping the 

 shoots. We go over them every day, watchful to take the tips 

 out of any shoots which are making unusual headway. It is 

 important that we keep them closely headed in. Soft shoots 

 break much better than those which have been allowed to 

 make from five to six inches of growth before being topped. 



We always find room for two or three dozen small speci- 

 mens which we grow in six-inch pots from May-struck cut- 

 tings, stopping them only once or twice, allowing from ten to 

 twelve blooms to each. Compact-growing varieties, needing 

 few stakes, are best suited for this purpose. 



Our stock plants for specimen blooms, cut over in March, 

 have now a good crop of cuttings which should be taken at 

 once for exhibition blooms. For general decorative purpose 

 nearly a month later will be early enough. 



The cuttings should be inserted as quickly as possible after 

 being taken, as if wilted to any extent they take a longer time 

 to root, as well as suffer a constitutional loss. Abundance of 

 water will be required for the first few days, and the plants 

 should be shaded when the sun shines. As the rooting goes 

 on, less and less water and shading will be needed, and at the 

 end of three weeks all should be rooted and hardened enough 

 to be potted off or boxed, according to the convenience of the 

 grower. 



Wellesley, Mass. T. D. Hatfield. 



Flower Garden Notes. 



MOST of the ornamental-leaved and flowering plants for 

 bedding out can be planted out from the middle to the 

 end of the present month. In this latitude Geraniums can be set 

 out with perfect safety by May 15th, but we prefer to wait until 

 the 2oth, so that all the plants may be sufficiently hardened off 

 and that the planting may be done as quicldy as possible. Gera- 

 niums, Ageratums, Tuberous Begonias and other moderately 

 hardy plants are now in cold frames ; the sashes are thrown 

 off, except during cold nights. Begonias dislike direct sun- 

 shine, and we run a lath shading over them during the middle 

 of the day. Coleus, Alternanthera, Cannas and other more 

 delicate plants are now in a cool house and will be placed in 

 frames about the middle of the month. From this time copi- 

 ous supplies of water will be needed by all plants in pots or 

 boxes, and special care should always be taken at planting out 

 time to have the balls of earth thoroughly wet. Neglect in this 

 particular is the cause of many plants doing so unsatisfactorily. 

 If a plant is thoroughly pot-bound and dry at the root in addi- 

 tion when set out, no ordinary waterings or rains will pene- 

 trate the ball of earth, and a small hollow space should be left 

 around each plant to catch the water. 



Among flowering plants Geraniums still hold a leading place, 

 and \v\\\, no doubt, always do so. They become rather straggly 

 by August, and heavy showers of rain give them a disheveled 

 appearance. To restrict the growth somewhat, it is the cus- 

 tom with certain growers to plunge the plants out in the pots. 

 This is done in the Public Gardens in Boston, and may be a 

 good plan where a good water-supply is at hand. If plants 

 have no special care, however, after being placed in the beds, 

 this plan would not be successful. I have never been specially 

 struck by the beauty of the Geranium beds in the Boston Pub- 

 lic Gardens, and if they are a fair sample of what may be ex- 

 pected from pot-plunged plants, I prefer to stick to the old 

 system. Cannas now occupy a front rank as flowering plants, 

 and deservedly so ; for large circular beds and wide borders 

 they are unexcelled. Tuberous Begonias, where heavy or even 

 partial shade can be obtained, are worthy of more extensive 

 cultivation. We have tried them in full sunshine, but even 

 when well watered and mulched they grew unsatisfactorily and 

 burned badly. Begonias love a rich compost and abundant 

 waterings during dry weather. Treated thus they are superior 

 to Zonal Pelargoniums in every way, and the ease with which 

 they are raised and can be kept over winter should commend 

 them to all flower-lovers. 



There are many plants now looking a little leggy and un- 

 gainly in the greenhouses which can he put to good uses in 

 mixed borders. Among these are Abutilons in variety, Hibis- 

 cus, Datura suaveolens and D. cornucopia. Plumbagos and 

 others. Begonias of the fibrous-rooted section will all do well 

 on a partially shaded border, and a mixed assortment of these 

 was as attractive as anything we had last summer. Those of 

 the Rex section are good in rockeries or in any other situation 

 which is rather heavily shaded. Crotons, Pandanus, Cala- 

 diums, Dieffenbachias, etc., cannot be exposed here before the 

 middle of June, and the season for them is so short that very 

 few care to go to the trouble of placing them outdoors. .'\ca- 



lyphas, however, prove excellent bedders, and are being used 

 in increasing numbers. 



Our early sowings of Stocks and Asters are usually planted 

 out about May lotf) ; of the first-named, Boston Florist, and of 

 the latter. Queen of the Market, are the earliest. We continue 

 to sow these at intervals of a fortnight until the middle of 

 June for successional crops. Marguerite Carnations, Dian- 

 thus, Gaillardias, Verbenas, etc., are planted about the same 

 time as Stocks and Asters. Zinnias, Phlox Drummondi, 

 Cockscombs, Torenias, Salvias and others are left ten days 

 later. A good number of these are dotted in perennial bor- 

 ders to brighten them up from the end of July onward, when 

 otherwise these borders would present a decidedly unattrac- 

 tive appearance. Seedlings of perennials should now be 

 planted out in nursery-rows and transferred to permanent 

 quarters in the fall. Perennial borders will require hoeing 

 and raking to keep them neat ; few plants will yet require 

 staking. 



The past winter proved a destructive one here ; Helianthus 

 in variety were killed outright in some situations, something 

 which has not happened for years before. This damage is 

 due to the light protection of snow we had all winter long. On 

 the other hand, Tritonias, Pyrethrums, double and single, and 

 Anemone Japonica have come through unscathed, and, 

 although usually these are considered tender, they withstood 

 a temperature of ten degrees below zero, with no snow or 

 other covering to protect them. Roses are now breaking 

 nicely. We give these a mulching of good cow-manure all 

 over the beds during this month. This keeps the roofs cooler 

 and retains moisture, very essential things in the cultivation 

 of hardy Roses in America. 



Grass verges have all been gone over with the edging-iron 

 recently, and the verges will require clipping weekly from this 

 time onward. Nothing so mucii adds to the appearance of a 

 place as good lawns and well-kept verges, yet even in some of 

 our leading parks the edges of the flower-beds do not seem to 

 have had an edging-iron or pair of shears over them during 

 the whole season ; no matter how well a bed may be planted, 

 if its verges are slovenly kept it is something of an eyesore to 

 those who have been properly trained in their profession. 



Taunton, Mass. ^. N. Craig. 



T 



Early-flowering Hardy Perennials. 



'HERE are few hardy herbaceous plants in early spring that 

 give as much pleasure and produce such showy flowers 

 as a good strong, healthy specimen of Adonis vernalis. 

 The ground is hardly free from frost when it begins to push 

 up its stems, and very soon the stems are crowned with large, 

 yellow, anemone-like flowers. I have had several complaints 

 about this plant from people who say they find it rather difficult 

 to grow and flower successfully. It does admirably here, and 

 the treatment given to it is very simple. It is grown in a bor- 

 der where it gets the full benefit of the sun all day. Care is 

 taken, when planting, that it is not put beside any large plants 

 that will shade it or rob it of its nourishment. Every third 

 year the plants are taken up carefully and the border is double 

 dug and enriched with manure. It is not beneficial to disturb 

 the plant Oftener than this. Small plants are not as satisfac- 

 tory as large ones. The small plants only bloom for a short 

 time in April ; but large, strong plants bloom well into May. 

 ffence the reason for not dividing them too much. Although 

 this plant conies from southern Europe, it is one of our har- 

 diest of perennials. It never needs protection of any kind in 

 our very severest winters. 



The Hepaticas are among our earliest flowers, and most of 

 them are over now. Under the shade of a Hemlock-tree, a 

 few flowers still linger on Hepatica angulosa, the best of all of 

 them. It is a beautiful plant, and its lovely sky-blue flowers 

 are much larger and showier than those of H. triloba or 

 H. acutiloba. It is quite hardy and delights in a rather shady 

 position with deep, rich, moist soil. 



Primula denticulata makes a good rock garden, and a large 

 mass of plants are flowering well at this time. The flowers 

 are produced in dense round heads on stems six to eight 

 inches high ; they are of a deep lilac color. The plant comes 

 from India, but is quite hardy here. It thrives in moderately 

 moist soil, and the flowers last longer if they are slightly 

 shaded. 



The large-leaved section of the genus Saxifraga is quite 

 conspicuous in the herbaceous border now. In early spring, 

 in exposed positions, the large evergreen leaves are rather 

 unsightly after our severe winters ; but the young leaves soon 

 expand, and are almost full grown, if planted in a warm posi- 

 tion, before the plants are "in full bloom. S. cordifolia has 



