198 



THE GARDEN AND FIELD. 



October, 1913 



from the ill-effects of either hot or 

 coM winds. In their native coun- 

 try' Japan, these plants assume 

 an almost tree-like form, being 

 found sometimes from thirty to 

 forty feet in height. The time for 

 planting out camellias is in the 

 autumn or spring. A famous Cor- 

 nish private garden has i ,000 

 Camellias, many of which are 

 up to twenty feet high and thirty 

 to forty feet in circumference. 



— Cole us. — 



Coleus a're easil}- raised from 

 seed, if little care is taken in 

 handling the seedlings during the 

 first month of their existence. Sow 

 the seed, which is very tine, in a 

 shallow box or pan of sweet, well- 

 drained earth, and keep in a glass- 

 hou.^e or frame until the young- 

 sters are fairly well advanced. 

 Prick the seedlings out as soon 

 as they can be handled, and push 

 them along. 



— Begonias. — 



Tuberous begonias of all sorts 

 may be planted in pots or in rich 

 beds, under a ti-tree or light shel- 

 ter. In either place they do ex- 

 tremely well, making quick growth, 

 and producing a profusion v of ex- 

 quisite blossoms. In any position 

 the soil must be very light, and 

 the drainage extra good. Bulbs 

 or tubers all like to be above 

 high-water mark. Where the sur- 

 plus water cannot find an oiitlet, 

 is no place for anything in the 

 llower line. Use a third coarse 

 sand, leaf mould, or very friable 

 loam, and old crumbly cow man- 

 ure. Let each tuber hiave a pot 

 of its own. When growing in beds 

 under cover ten inches of clear 

 room will sufiice. Keep the tpber 

 top just above the soil. 



— The Mock Orange. — 



leaves smell very similarly to Cu- 

 cumbers when freshly cut. Some 

 other plants could be named that 

 have a fairly similar odour, but 

 they are herbs while this is a 

 shrub. It is one of the. smallest 

 and therefore very suitable ' for 

 gardens of small size. The flowers 

 are pure white, fragrant, and when 

 produced in quantity' are really 

 very effective from a distance. 



The plant flowers on the wood 

 made last year, so that cultiva- 

 tors should remember this wh,en 

 pruning, as this habit really de- 

 termines when the pruning suould 

 be done. 'After the llowers are 

 past their best the bushies may be 

 cut back if the desire is to Keep 

 them within narrow bounds. The 

 \ oung shoots m.ade will then ripen 

 up and flower next season. Pro- 

 pagation may,, be effected in se- 

 veral ways, such as lifting suckers 

 some time 'before growth com- 

 mences, and setting them out in 

 nursery lines to form bushes to 

 be used in the shrubbery whenj of 

 suitable size. Branches may also 

 be layered at any time in spring 

 or summer. Cuttings may be 

 taken of short side shoots just be- 

 ginning to get firm at the base, 

 ren-.'oving them with a small heel 

 of the old wood. An^- good gar- 

 den soil will meet their require- 

 ments, but should it be very 

 heavy the addition of sand will 

 do miuch to improve it. 



— Flag Irises. — 



Tall growing and handsome, these 

 plants form a charming picture 

 with their num.erous large and 

 lovely flowers of various shades of 

 colour. They are among the 

 easiest of plants to grow ; estab- 

 lished clumps produce a large 

 number of flower stems, and keep 

 up ai succession of bloom' for a con- 

 siderable time. ■ 



they are sufficiently advanced to 

 bear handling, pA-epare a suitable 

 nursery bed in a not too sunny a 

 position, and transplant them 

 without delay. If allowed to get 

 overcrowded in the seed bed they 

 become weakened. Tread down the 

 soil of the ])ed lirmfy, level vrith a 

 rake and plant nine inches to a 

 foot apart. Plant firmly and ap- 

 ply copious waterings in the als- 

 sence of rain. UTiere several 

 varieties are grown, each should 

 be carefully labelled, so that no 

 mistake occurs when finally plant- 

 ing out in the beds or borders. 

 Plv the hoe frequently, both to 

 keep down weeds and also to pre- 

 vent a hard, caked surface on the 

 bed. Be)-ond this the j)lants will 

 little attention, and nice strong 

 specimens should be available for 

 planting when required in the au- 

 tumn months. 



— The Camellia. — 



The camellia is not often happy 

 out of doOTS on the plains, or in fact 

 in any northerly exposed position, 

 where its foliage is apt to be 

 scorched and unsightly. Yet we 

 sometimes meet with fine healthy 

 specimens growing in sheltered 

 situations in suburban gardens. In 

 the warm but more humid cli- 

 mate of Sydney, the camellia 

 flouri.sbes, and is sometimes used 

 for making hedges. Apart from' 

 their magnificent flowers, the hand- 

 some shining evergreen foliage of 

 these plants render them great 

 favourites with most people. They 

 ma^- be grown in almost any 

 ordinarily good garden soil, but a 

 rich, fi1)ry loam, well drained, 

 suits them best. They may be 

 grown with other plants in the 

 shrubbery border, but care should 

 be taken to prevent the roots of 

 trees or large growing shrubs from 

 interfering with them, but tihey 

 do be.st in a bed by themselves 

 where they may be more easily 

 mulched and watered than they 

 would 1)c in a mixed border. The 

 ground should be deeply worked, 

 and, if poor, well-rotted manure 

 should be freely used, or, in its 

 absence, coarse bonedust may be 

 added. Liberal waterings must be 

 given in dry weather, and the 

 hose freely used to plants newly 

 set out, or iti the spring time, 

 when new growth is being made. 

 The plants are chiefly of a com- 

 ])act habit of growth, but S'ome 

 are inclined to be tall and 

 straggling ; they bear the knife 

 well, and even old and leggy plants 

 may l>e pruned into sha])ely six;ci- 

 mens. Camellias .should l)e plant- 

 wl where they would be sheltered 



This shrulj succeeds in almost 

 any good gardtn soil, and when 

 properly dealt with by the grower 

 are realh- very handsome objects 

 in the garden, both at close 

 range and distant view. This is 

 brought about by the ({uantity of 

 flowers they jjroduce. In some 

 varieties the flowers are sweet 

 scented, thus lending an addition- 

 al charm to shrubs that are fairly 

 ]iopidar both in gardens of large 

 and small size. 



The first to come into bloom is 

 P. coronarius, the sul)ject of this 

 note. It is sometimes termed the 

 Cucumber jilant as -a pojnilar 

 name, and this took its origin 

 from' the fact that the fresh young 



Once planted in good sandy loam 

 or almost any good garden soil, 

 these Irises will produce tin abun- 

 dance of flowers annually for 

 veral years. When neces.sary 

 replant, the best time is just aft 

 tbey have finished flowering ; t' 

 gives time for the plants to 

 come established again befo're t' 

 following winter. 



— Asters. — 



Asters are perhaps the mo 

 ] 'opular half-hardy annuals we ha 

 Thc\- are of nearly all colou 

 and they rangie in height f 

 about eight inches to two feet 

 even more. The plant needs 

 very rich soil. A deep, rich loa 



