The Charm of Old Walls 43 



of the drier conditions and the immunity from soil 

 splashes so disfiguring to it on level ground. For 

 the type of plant described, February to April may 

 be accepted as a good period for planting, always, 

 however, to be followed, for some time, by careful 

 attention to watering. 



Treatment of Old Walls.— These are difficult of treat- 

 ment generally, and the planter is well advised to con- 

 fine his work to the top. In the case of old buttressed 

 walls which terminate in an inverted V-shaped top and 

 plinth, the lower parts are almost impossible of treat- 

 ment because of the dryness; Having successfully 

 treated the upper parts of such walls, I have found 

 seeds by far the best method, mingling- a few with a 

 handful of moistened clay soil. The number sliould be 

 strictly limited, as the plants which succeed in such 

 places produce seeds abundantly, and vegetate freely 

 and quickly. A few of the joints will have to be raked 

 out, i.e., freed of the cement-like mortar, and having 

 been soaked a few times with water, introduce the seedr 

 charged soil into the crevices. Autumn is the best 

 time for the work, as before the comir>g of the dry 

 weather of spring the seedlings will have taken to their 

 places. Wallflower, Snapdragon, Aubrietia, Corydalis 

 lutea. Red Valerian, Thrift, and Iceland Poppy are 

 among the most useful subjects for this type of wall. 

 Artificial caricatures of old ruins and the like are 

 treated with a much larger number of things, and 

 usually it is their undoing. 



The following plants are suitable for planting in 

 walls. Those preceded by an asterisk are best suited 

 to bold positions, ruins, and similar places. 



