September 25, 1895.] 



Garden and Forest. 



387 



the handsomest of flowers, but simply because they are some- 

 what unique, give good results for the space occupied, and 

 require less attention in many respects than plants of more 

 rapid and softer growth. Besides, an amateur will usually 

 find the most satisfaction in growing the plants which are not 

 adapted to or are unprofitable for commercial culture. There 

 is no special satisfaction in devoting a small house to Roses, 

 Carnations or other Howers that can be had from the neigh- 

 boring fiorist. 

 Elizabeih, N. J. J.N.Gerard. 



Flower-garden Notes. 



TIJ'ROSTS liave occurred much earlier than usual this year, and 

 -•- on September 15th Alternanthera, Coleus and other tender 

 bedding-plants were completely blackened in many places. 

 Generally our first frost does not come until about October 

 loth. We prefer to lift a few old plants of Coleus and grow 

 these during winter in a moderately warm house. The plants, 

 by judicious pinching, are highly decorative, and a few will fur- 

 nish a large quantity of cuttings. We lift old roots of Alter- 

 nanthera, trim the plants within reasonable bounds, and plant 

 them quite thickly in boxes, which are placed on a shelf in our 

 Rose-house. Of Stevia, Achyranthus, Santolina and other 

 foliage-plants we pot a few old plants of each, and they vield 

 an abundance of spring cuttings. Among the newer bedding 

 plants, Strobilanlhes Dyerianus has grown strongly, but its 

 weedy habit is not likely to commend it for extensive future 

 use. Abutilon Souvenir de Bonn is the handsomest Abutilon 

 we have grown. It attained a height of six feet here, and for 

 tropical beds or planting as individual specimens iu mixed bor- 

 ders it can be highly recommended. Phrynium variegatum 

 has grown well ; the leaves show but little coloring, although 

 grown in a well-exposed situation. We tried some fancy- 

 leaved Caladiums in the open this year ; they were set in the 

 full sunlight and have made surprisingly good growth, mucJi 

 better than those in pots. These plants were thoroughly wet 

 with the hose every evening during the hot season and occa- 

 sionally watered with liquid-manure. This experiment shows 

 that Caladiums, under favorable conditions, may be fairly well 

 grown in the open air, even in New England. 



We generally put our Geranium cuttings for bedding into 

 boxes the first week in October. The boxes are filled half 

 their depth with broken pot sherds or shells. Over this we 

 place a layer of sphagnum and fill the balance with sand, which 

 is pressed firmly and watered before the cuttings are inserted. 

 A good soaking is given after the cuttings are in, and the 

 boxes are placed on a shelf close up to the light in a Carnation- 

 house. They require no shading, and the only attention neces- 

 sary until potting-off time in spring is an occasional watering 

 to keep the cuttings from shriveling, and the removal of any 

 decaymg stems or Howers. Fully ninety per cent, of the cut- 

 tings should be carried over safely. The popular variety, 

 Madame Salleroi, is so easily propagated that a few old plants 

 only need be potted up to secure a large stock of spring 

 cuttings. 



Tuberous Begonias, after being killed by frost, should be 

 lifted and laid on a dry shelf in a greenhouse or warm shed. 

 When sutficiently dry we store them in boxes of dry sand and 

 keep them over winter in an ordinary potato cellar. Flower- 

 ing Cannas should be looked over and carefully labeled before 

 frost comes. If this is not done the varieties are liable to get 

 badly mixed. We always pot a few of each of the best kinds, 

 as they are admirable winter bloomers and brighten the con- 

 servatory and greenhouse when showy flowers are none too 

 plentiful. 



Tender bedding plants should be cleared away soon after 

 they are cut down by frost. After the plants are removed we 

 have our beds manured and dug over ; some gardeners allow 

 this work to wait until spring, but there is enough to be done 

 then which cannot be done in the fall. Dutch bulbs are now 

 arriving, and as these lose vitality while in paper bags, 

 they should be planted out as early as circumstances will 

 permit. 



Lawns and drives will be untidy for some weeks to come on 

 account of falling leaves. They should be raked over at least 

 once a week. Newly seeded lawns should be rolled after 

 heavy rains, when the soil is not pasty. Grass verges should 

 be clipped for the last time. Beds, if neatly dug and bordered, 

 help the appearance of a place greatly ; too often they have an 

 appearance of utter neglect from October until the next bed- 

 ding season comes around. 



Perennial borders now have a rather disheveled appear- 

 ance. Frost, heavy rains and high winds spoil their beauty, 

 but varieties of Helianthus, Asters, hardy Chrysanthemums, 

 Anemone Japonica, Colchicums and other plants are still flow- 



ering luxuriantly. The best fime to transplant perennials is 

 during October ; it is well to take note of the heights of the 

 various plants and mark those it is intended to remove. 

 Hardy plants removed to fresh quarters at this season 

 will, of course, give much better satisfaction than those 

 planted in spring. The ground should be kept well stirred 

 among Sweet Williams and other biennials in nursery beds. 

 Some varieties of these, such as Antirrhinums. WallHowers 

 and Daisies, we plant into frames about the end of October. 

 Pansies we usually prick out early in October, setting them 

 about four inches apart each way. 



Summer-blooming Carnations will continue to flower for 

 some time unless there is severe frost. They should be kept 

 tied up securely to prevent heavy rains from soiling the flow- 

 ers. We grow late Asters in cold fraines, and are thus able to 

 protect them in case of early frost. Those grown in the open, 

 if lifted with balls of earth and planted in frames, will furnish 

 good flowers until Chrysanthemums bloom. Cosmos is a 

 useful flower in October. The plants should be tied to 

 stout stakes, as they break with very little wind. We placed 

 the sashes on Violet frames about September isth; they 

 should be kept on at night and removed during the day when 

 the weather is warm. We run a lath shading over the plants 

 for a short time during the hottest part of the day, until the 

 first of Octoljer. Runners, weeds and decaying foliage should 

 be removed each week, and the surface soil stirred frequentlv. 

 A sharp lookout must be kept for signs of spot ; badly infected 

 plants should be pulled up and destroyed, and a spraying of 

 Bordeaux mixture given to all others. At no season' ot'^the 

 year does the disease spread more swiftly than now, and it is 

 necessary to be on the alert to counteract it. 



Taunton, Mass. IV. N. Craig. 



Two Go(5d Grapes. 



TTWO grapes that can be very highly recommended to 

 -"■ lovers of spicy rich fruit are the Hayes and Eldorado. 

 Both of them are very early, ripening this year by September 

 5th. Hayes may be classed as about three days earlier than 

 Eldorado. It is a large white grape, about the size of Diamond, 

 and much the same translucent color. It is not a rank grower] 

 but is a fairly good wine-maker. The flavor is sweet, but 

 sparkling, and nearly as rich as that of Lady. The seeds are 

 few and very small. This is an item of very great importance, 

 as many of our best grapes fail at this point. Nearly all of 

 Rogers' Hybrids, for example, have large seeds and many of 

 them. Hayes is a good keeper, on or off the vines, and has no 

 tendency to drop from the cluster. Rot rarely attacks it. 



Eldorado is in most ways a close likeness ot Hayes, and has 

 a reputation of being a shy bearer. My own experience with 

 it indicates that it is not quite a perfect self-poUenizer, but 

 wlien grown with other grapes it is a fine cropper. The color 

 is less showy than that of Hayes when fully ripe. Possibly the 

 flavor is a trifle more spicy, like that of the Lady. But these 

 two grapes should find a place in every collection where 

 quality is appreciated. 



Clinton, N. Y. 



E. p. Powell. 



Solanum Wendlandi. 



/^NE of the most promising novelties of recent introduction 

 ^—^ is this climber, which, although not a new plant, strictly 

 speaking, has only recently been made available to cultivators 

 on this side of the Atlantic. There is an excellent figure of it 

 in The Garden, February ist, iSgo, the color of the flowers 

 being, perhaps, a little darker than is the case with plants 

 grown here under a stronger sun. No climbing plant of my 

 acquaintance will cover so much space in a short time as this 

 one. Our plant was a small one, set out in a bench in a green- 

 liouse, and in six weeks covered as many feet each way with 

 a strong growth of rich, dark foliage and'many large heads of 

 flowers, some of these over a foot in diameter. The individual 

 Howers open in succession until all have expanded, so that 

 each head of bloom is a thing of beauty for at least a month. 

 The flowers are i-^early two inches in diameter and of a pale 

 lavender-blue. I saw it recently growing in the succulent 

 house at Kew, where it was luxuriating in full sunshine and 

 plenty of air, and it seems to me that there is a use for it as a 

 summer climbing plant for outdoor planting in this climate; 

 of course, in warmer sections it should prove hardv, and it 

 would then be a deciduous plant. Wherever this Solaiuim is 

 used it must have a good rich soil to grow in, as it is a great 

 feeder and cannot lie treated too lilierally. In the issue of The 

 Garden referred lo we are told that " Kew is indebted for this 

 Solanum to Mr. Wendland, Director of the famous Botanic Gar- 

 dens at Herrenhausen, who sent a plant of it in i8S;, with the 



