586 



PB ACTIO AL GUIDE TO GABDEN PLANTS ehododendeon 



the shoots, and thus obtaining a good 

 stock of healthy plants on their own 

 roots. The plants very often layer them- 

 selves, and if left undisturbed wUl in the 

 course of time assume large proportions. 

 Layering being a natural process, it is 

 more likely that plants obtained in this 

 way will live longer than when grafted. 



Cuttings of the partially ripened shoots 

 may be inserted in sandy peat in summer, 

 and kept close and shaded, but the 

 majority often never root, and there is 

 nothing gained by this method. 



Grafting is extensively practised on 

 stocks of B. ponUcum raised from seed. 

 Eipened scions are taken in autumn, and 

 most of the leaves are retained. When 

 attached to the stock by veneer or side 

 grafting, they are kept in close shaded 

 frames mitil union has taken place, when 

 they gradually receive more air and light. 

 Probably more from custom than anything 

 else, iJ. ponticum has been used indis- 

 criminately as a stock for almost all kinds 

 of Rhododendron. But of late years a, 

 variety of the American B. cata/wbiense 

 called Gunningha/m's White has been spo- 

 ken of very favourably as a stock, and on 

 the Continent at least it is extensively used 

 for this purpose in some large nurseries. 

 Coming from colder regions than the 

 Asiatic B. ponticum, it is consequently 

 hardier, and as a stock is not so likely to 

 smother or outgrow the choicer kinds 

 grafted on it, as is often the case with B. 

 ponticv/m. 



Mulching or Top-d/ressing. — One often 

 sees Rhododendrons which although 

 grown in good soil still present an un- 

 happy appearance, and rarely give an 

 adequate supply of blossom to justify 

 their existence. This state of affairs is 

 frequently seen in what are termed 

 ' neatly kept ' gardens. The neatness 

 consists in clearing away from beneath 

 trees and shrubs of every kind the leaves 

 which fall on the ground every season. 

 It is natural for leaves to fall, and they 

 serve a useful purpose in giving back 

 food to the soil and keeping it warm in 

 winter. In fact they form a natural 

 mulching and top-dressing, and should 

 never be cleared from under trees or 

 shrubs unless in cases of absolute neces- 

 sity. In the case of non-flowering 

 Rhododendrons experience proves that if 

 the soil in which they grow is mulched 

 with old leaves, or even the short grass 

 from the lawns, they will in the course of 



a year or two come into a more or less 

 free-flowering state. 



Below is given a selection of the best 

 natural species for outdoor cultivation in 

 the British Islands. All of them will 

 flourish more or less in the mild southern 

 parts of England and Ireland, but not in 

 less favoured spots. It is not really the 

 winter frosts that do so much injury to 

 the ripened wood and weU-protected buds, 

 but the frosts of April and May, when the 

 sap has begun to flow, and the buds have 

 burst forth from their winter protecting 

 scales. Having once started into growth 

 nothing can save the juicy young growths 

 from injury by late frosts, if fairly severe. 



The hard smooth-leaved kinds appear 

 to be less Uable to injury than the wooUy- 

 leaved kinds. The latter probably retain 

 moisture much longer than the others, 

 and in the event of frost, of course, 

 become more or less sheeted with ice. 



It is impossible to lay down any hard 

 and fast line as to hardiness, as the 

 seasons play such a large part in the 

 ripening or otherwise of the wood. Many 

 of the kinds mentioned below are recorded 

 as having passed uninjured through as 

 much as 20° frost, and very often plants 

 have suffered more in southern parts than 

 in northern ones. 



As a rule, any of the Himalayan 

 Rhododendrons which grow in a wild 

 state at an elevation of more than 9000 

 or 10,000 feet are more or less hardy 

 in the British Islands. For huge cold 

 conservatories, like the Temperate House 

 at Kew Gardens, they are magnificent, 

 and of com'se come into blossom much 

 earlier than the plants grown out of doors. 



R. albiflorum. — An erect Rocky 

 Mountain species 2-3 ft. high, with elhptic 

 lance-shaped deciduous leaves 1-1^ in. 

 long. Flowers in July, creamy white, 

 in drooping clusters. Corolla rotate bell- 

 shaped; stamens 10. 



Culfnre d-c. as above. 



R. Anthopogon. — A native of Central 

 and N. Asia 1-lJ ft. high. Leaves oval, 

 rusty beneath. Flowers in April and 

 May, sulphur-yeUow, in heads. CoroOa 

 salver-shaped, bearded withm. Stamens 8. 



Culture dc. as above. 



R. arboreum. — A handsome Hima- 

 layan tree 15-20 ft. high, with large, 

 leathery, lance-shaped acute leaves, 

 beautiful shining green above, silvery or 



