343 



CASSELL'S POPULAR GAKDENINa. 



25. Eoyal Muscadine. — Around, wMte, Sweet- 

 water grape, of excellent quality, and easy cultiva- 

 tion. It grows and fruits well in a cool house ; is 

 an abundant bearer, and keeps well after it is ripe. 

 This is one of the most useful vines for amateurs, 

 .and is weU adapted for pot culture. 



26. Syrian. — A large, coarse, white grape, now 

 rarely met with. It requires plenty of room, and 

 should be grown in a well-drained border, as the 

 wood and fruit require a long time to ripen. After 

 long exposure to the sun, the berries are passable ; 

 but no one now thinks of planting it. It is men- 

 tioned here, as it is supposed to be the variety which 

 the Spies found in the Land of Promise. Speechley, 

 ■of Welbeck, grew a bunch weighing 19 lbs. 



27. TrelDbiano. — Very similar to Eaisin de 

 Calabre; a handsome, white, late grape, of second 

 •quality, only valuable for its keeping qualities. Mr. 

 Curror, of Eskbank, in 1875, grew a bunch, the 

 heaviest on record, weighing ^6 lbs. 4 ozs. If the 

 vines have plenty of space, and the grapes are 

 allowed to ripen and hang for a long time in a high 

 temperature, they will keep good until the end of 

 March. One vine may have a place in large col- 

 lections. 



28. Venn's Seedling.— An excellent black, Mus- 



- cat-flavoured grape, supposed to be a seedling, but 

 not a cross, from Muscat-Hamburgh. However this 

 may be, it sets and swells better than many, and 

 having a thicker skin and stouter footstalks, it keeps 

 longer than the parent. It succeeds, too, where the 

 Muscat-Hamburgh is a failure. 



29. "West's St. Peters.— A first-uate, old, late- 

 keeping, black grape, still worthy of extensive culti- 

 vation. The bunches and beiTies are of medium 



- size, and on this account well adapted for keeping. 

 When well ripened, under Lady Downes treatment. 

 It will keep well until the middle of March. In 

 point of quality, it is little inferior to the Hamburgh, 

 which it succeeds. 



30. White Prontignan.— This, like all the 

 neglected family, is one of the most delicious, musk- 

 flavoured varieties known to grape-growers. It does 

 weU with Hamburghs, and requires exposure to the 

 sun when ripening. It is an excellent variety for 

 fruiting in pots. 



31. White ISTice. — A white, vinous grape, of 

 second quality. The bunches are large and ugly. 



■ The berries, which are of medium size, set well, and 

 require a long period, under warm Hamburgh 

 treatment, to bring them up to a presentable condi- 

 tion. Where large exhibition bunches are wanted, a 

 vine should be planted. Mr. Eowler, Castle Ken- 

 nedy, has grown it 17 lbs. 2 ozs., and Mr. Dickson, 

 Arkleton, has produced clusters weighing 18 lbs. 

 "7 ozs., 19 lbs. 5 ozs., and 25 lbs. 15 ozs. 



32. White Tokay. — This is an oval, vinous 

 gi-ape, of first-rate quality, well worthy of a place in 

 every late house. It can be grown with mid-season 

 Hamburghs, where it can hang to finish after the 

 latter are cut from the vines. When the berries 

 become of a rich amber colour, and the leaves have 

 fallen, it can be kept for a long time in the grape- 

 room. 



THE PLOWER GARDEN. 



By William Wildsmith. 



THE "MIXED" STYLE. 



BY the term " mixed style " is meant not only the • 

 cultivation of hardy flowering herbaceous per- 

 ennial plants (these principally), but these combined 

 with suitable dwarf shrubs and hardy carpeting 

 plants, such as Sedums and Saxifragas, and even 

 some plants of a tender nature, which, in the summer 

 season, can be grouped in vacant spots, and add 

 greatly to the interest of the general arrangement. 

 Many people object to this mixed style of planting, 

 charging it with lack of neatness, too much labour 

 in tying plants to supports, lack of colour, bare 

 earth, and general unsuitability for dressed grounds 

 or formal beds. With the exception of the last, 

 none of these objections are difficult to overcome. 

 The last objection, in our opinion, is certainly a 

 valid one, and therefore we should never think of 

 adapting the style to such positions. Formality of 

 design does demand — if we may be allowed the term 

 — formality of plants, or, in other words, uniformity 

 of height and a true balance of colour, without 

 which a formal series of beds are anything but a 

 pleasure to contemplate — at any rate, to persons of 

 ordinary vision. As to the other objections, under 

 the head of "arrangement,". we hope to show how 

 tjiey can be surmounted. 



Merits of the Style. — The principal one is that 

 the great bulk of the plants being hardy and of easy 

 culture, the smallest equally with the largest garden 

 may have its mixed flower-bed or border. Another 

 advantage is that, though desirable, it is not really 

 necessary that there should be any set form of 

 arrangement, so long as the plants are arranged 

 according to height, and therefore the veriest novice 

 need have no fear of failure, even on the score ot 

 arrangement. Another merit is that a small collec- 

 tion of plants looks just as complete as the largest, 

 of course size of beds and borders being taken into 

 account. Still another advantage is that there is 

 but little labour attendant on the culture of the 

 plants; tying, weeding, and clearing away dead 



