28 



January 13, 1912 



THE MAIDEN PINK. 



The Maiden Pink (Diantlins deltoides) is 

 no new introduction to this country, and, 

 so far from this being the case, it is a mem- 

 ber of our native flora 



PROGRESS IN SWEET PEAS. 



(Continued from page 4.) 



Among the yelloAv or cream varieties 

 Queen Victoria was the first I made particu- 

 lar note of, and it was followed by Mrs. 



and substance, and Mr. W. J. Unwin 



cer America 



are 

 the 

 size 



and 



Spen- 



May Campbell, and Loyalty 

 far in advance of anything we had in 

 old tvne either in colour, form, or 



type, 

 though Aurora 



and plentiful in 



various part^ of the United Kingdom. One Eckford, The Hon. Mrs. E. Kenyon, and, varieties in their time. ^ In Lottie Eckford 



Grey Friars, Gaiety, 

 good 



of the most beautiful of wild plants, it has 

 long been grown in gardens; how long it 

 is not possible to say. The Maiden Pink 

 was cultivated by Gerard in his garden up- 

 wards of three centuries ago, and with re- 

 ference to it he writos in bis "Herbal": 

 "The Virgin is like unto the rest of the 

 garden pinkes in i^talkes, leaves, and 

 rentes The flowers are of a blush colour, 

 whereof it tooke its name, which sheweth 



tlie difference from the other." The plants 

 of this pink range when under cultivation 

 from six to twelve inches in height, accord- 

 ing to the otmditions under which they are 

 grown, and the flower stems are freely pro- 



Collins, the latter bein^ 

 probably the best in the old type. How- 

 ever, the introduction of Clara Curtis put 

 these varieties out of court, and, as an 

 exhibition floAver, it seems likely to keep 

 its place for some time to come. Paradise 

 Ivory and Isabel Malcolm are botb good 

 flowers, but they do not exhil)it rhat im- 

 provement on the old type that Clara Curtis 

 does. Orange-s:?arlet is a colour in which 

 much improvement has been made ; in fact, 

 one might almost say the most improve- 

 ment has been made here. Thomas Steven- 

 son^ Edna I^nwin, and others are far in 

 advance of the old type, not only in size 



and Dainty we had two very pleasing pico- 

 tee-edged varieties in the old form, but 

 w^ith the introduction of Evelyn Hemus 

 and Elsie Herbert we made certainly one 

 of the greatest advances in sweet pea rais- 

 ing, and this in the early days of the waved 

 forms; since then distinct picotee varieties 

 have been slow to come 



have been two 



for though there 

 three othe rs . th ese 



or tliree others, 

 much lack the form and substance of the 

 two named. 



Henry Eckford was, to the best of my 



the only sal- 

 mon variety of the grandiflora type, so 

 here again distinct advances have been 



" — ^ _ _ — 



knowledge and remembrance 



A GOOD Sl'KCIMKN- OF TUK MAIDEX PINK (DIANTHUS DELTOIDES). 



1 h<' How tM S ;i 1*' M 11 Sill r.i*viV ^-^A f,.^ J 1 



a IV 1)1 ush pink, and freely produced. 



du<'ed, and, a>. they divicU^ near the top. and 

 prixluce several blooms each, the effect pro- 

 duced by a well-developed specimen is very 

 pleasing. 



While worthy of a place in rock gardens 

 that are under the charge of cultivators 

 of exceptional experience, it i< csptn-ially 

 adapted to the requir(>ments of those to 

 whom plants that thrive under simple treat- 

 ment are of value, it will flourish on the 



hnlge of a rwkery or in the mixed border, 

 but wher*- the soil is naturally heavy and 

 tenneious. it ;in .'ulv:: in age to provide thr 

 phuuswitli s|)»'i i;iliy prrj)ared statious, and 

 to rai^f' thr Mul;if.> a tow im-hes above the 

 -urtaro. (Jornl turfy loam, to wtii<']i have 

 ''*'^'n small i^ropf.rtiuris of hrokeii liuie- 



vtom. or sa!wUt(,nr. <nir>o .sarul and lime 



rubble, should Ik^ used in the pri^paration of 

 rock ledges or stations in the borders. 

 1 hinting may bo <l<)iio at the close of the 

 wmter or early in tlu* autumn. 



and colour, but also from the fact that the 

 flowers will .stand the sun, a virtue not 

 }ms.scs>iH| by Evelyn Byatt or Gorgeous, 



wh:ch were the l>est of this colour in the 

 old type. 



Among tbe rose-coloured varieties, John 

 Ingman and l{(».sabella may be said to excel 

 and here again it must be acknowledgeil 

 they are far in advance of Splendour and 

 Lord Rosebery, while Lady G. Hamilton 

 and Countess of Radnor would hardlv now 



Barbara, and 



F. 



be pittefl against sn<ii varieties as R 



h\Aton and Floreice Nightingale in 

 la\cnfler -class. 



T]w bicolor varieties also have made con- 

 si<lerable i>rogress. and Mrs. A. Ireland, 

 Colleen, and Mrs. Cnthbertson mav be said 

 q'l't*' 'i;|^t Api-le Blossom. Triuinph. and 



' 1 ■ J hin^^ f^till a 



leli- 



made. for Earl Spe _^ , 



AIeli)a cacb are good waved sweet peas, and 

 wiien well grow^n make wonderfully effec- 

 tive bunches. 1 have no doubt our raisers 

 will soon give us these in sunproof form, 

 which wdl be a notable advance. Stirling 

 Stent IS deeper in colour, and does not turn 

 so much as the preceding varieties, but it 

 lacks size. In lilac, mauve, and fancy 

 varieties much improvement has been made, 

 and Charles Foster, Prince George Mar- 

 quis, Tennant Spencer, Marchioness of 



Jeannie ( J(n-dou . thoiwdi 

 love for tbe two first ber-ause of their 

 cacy of colouring. The flaked variet"es are 

 now amongst the l>est of sweet peas in form 



the 1 weedale, etc., etc., are much in advance 



ot the older varieties, the delicacy of colour- 

 ing being even more marked than tho ad- 

 vance in size and form, 

 qualities are in no way lacking. 



These few comna-isons: will <^how 



though these two 



the 



coni]>a'isons 



great .advances that have been made, 

 there is still room for improvement/ 

 should like a flower of the same colour as 



but 

 AVe 



good size and Spe 



