240 



PRACTICAL GUIDE TO GARDEN PLANTS dianthus 



Britain (the limestone rooks of Cheddar). 

 Leaves of the barren shoots linear, blunt, 

 the upper ones of the flowering stems 

 acute. Flowers in June and July, 1 in. 

 across, fragrant, delicate rose ; petals 

 obovate, crenate, downy. 



Culture and Propagation. — The 

 Cheddar Pink is a beautiful plant for 

 making a carpet at the edge of the flower 

 border, or may be used in masses in the 

 rockery. It likes a rich sandy soil and a 

 warm sheltered position to appear at its 

 best. It ripens seeds freely, and these 

 may be sown in the same way as described 

 above for Sweet Williams (-D. barbatus). 

 It is, however, much easier to increase the 

 plants simply by dividing them during 

 mUd showery weather, either in early 

 autumn or in spring. Once established 

 the plants need not be disturbed for three 

 or four years unless they exhibit signs of 

 weakness. Besides seeds and division 

 most of the perennial species of Dianthus 

 may also be increased by cuttings and 

 layers in the same way as stated for 

 Carnations, p. 242. 



D. callizonus. — A beautiful alpine 

 Pink, native of Transylvania, with a dense 

 tufted habit and lance-shaped pointed blue- 

 green leaves. It flowers profiisely during 

 the summer months ; the rich rosy-pm:ple 

 blossoms are 1^-2 in. across, with a distinct 

 deep purple zone in the centre, and 

 scarcely overtop the bed of blue-green 

 foliage, but rather nestle amongst it. 



Culture and Propagation. — This plant 

 does not apparently seed freely in the 

 British Islands, although it is perfectly 

 haray. It may, however, be easily in- 

 creased by division in autumn or spring, 

 like D. ccEsius, and also by means of 

 cuttings placed in sandy soil. It is an 

 excellent rock plant. 



D. Caryophyllus {Carnation; Clove; 

 Pink). — The Wild Carnation is naturalised 

 here and there on old castle walls in Eng- 

 land, and is also distributed all over Cen- 

 tral and E. Europe. It is a stout glaucous 

 smooth perennial, much branched and 

 leafy below, 18-24 in. high. Leaves 4-6 

 in. long, linear awl-shaped, grooved above. 

 Flowers in summer, 1^ in. across, fragrant, 

 nearly every colour except blue, but rosy 

 in the type ; petals broadly obovate, 

 toothed and crenate. 



CARNATIONS 



The Carnation, like the Rose, has for 

 several centuries been a favourite garden 



plant, and careful selection and cultivation 

 by generations of gardeners through these 

 long years have produced flowers so 

 beautiful in shape, and so diversified in 

 colour, that one can hardly imagine them 

 to be descended from such a simple plant 

 as D. Ca/ryophyllus described above. 



Carnations are divided into three main 

 groups by florists, viz. :—£iza/rres (sub- 

 divided into crimson, pink, and purple, 

 and scarlet-flowered) ; Flakes (subdivided 

 into ptirple, rose, and scarlet) ; and Selfs, 

 which as the name indicates have flowers 

 of a uniform colour of any shade through- 

 out. 



The Bizarres are variously coloured 

 or spotted or striped, with two or three 

 distinct colours on a clear ground. The 

 Flakes have a pure ground flaked with 

 one colour only the entire length of the 

 petals. 



Besides the Carnations proper, there is 

 also a very important and beautiful class 

 known as Picotees. These are easily 

 distinguished by having a ground colour, 

 the petals being edged with a distinct and 

 striking colour. This edging may be 

 either 'heavy' or 'light,' and serves to 

 separate Picotees into two sections, in 

 each of which the edges may be either 

 purple, red, or rose ; in addition to 

 which are the ' Yellow ground ' Picotees, 

 a vigorous class in which the flowers are 

 various shades of yellow, buff and apricot, 

 sometimes marked on the edges, or with 

 lines radiating from centre to edge. 



What are known as 'Tree or Per- 

 petual ' Carnations are usually grown 

 under glass for flowering in winter in 

 pots. They do not therefore come within 

 the scope of this work. 



In the olden days, there was also a 

 section known as ' Painted Ladies,' in 

 which the under side of the petals was 

 white, and the upper side red or purple, as 

 if painted on the white. This class has 

 practically disappeared from cultivation 

 altogether, but the National Carnation 

 and Picotee Society may endeavom' to 

 revive it some day. 



The characteristics of a good Carnation 

 or Picotee flower may be said to consist 

 of a circular outline, with smooth and 

 rounded edges, regularity in size and 

 shape of the petals, and a calyx which 

 does not split. Where a tendency to 

 burst the tubular calyx exists, a thin 



