THE GARDENERS* MAGAZINE, 



February 3, 1912. 



throughout the line is ample, but double 

 lines and rather more space between the 

 plants, is preferable, placing these in alter- 

 nately', and about eight inches apart every 

 way/ The usual method of placing the 

 roots at about the same depth as before, 

 and making all firm around them should be 

 followed. Planting may take place at any 

 time between October and April, but wheie 

 the ground can be made ready in t:me the 

 late autumn is best, the plants thus getting 

 partly established before severe weather 

 sets in, and are thereby better able to re- 

 sist drought during the ensuing season. 

 Protection from both game and cattle may 

 be necessary, and must be carriinl out ac- 

 cording to needs, and the exigencies of the 

 situation. 



Having completed a seasons growth, m 

 the spring following upon this, the plants 

 may be hard pruned to induce a branching 

 habit, thereby laying the foundation of the 

 future hedge. 'With a sharp knife, or 

 small hook, make a severance at about six 

 inches from the soil, thus entirely remov- 

 ing the tops of the plants. Weeds will 

 now have become troublesome, and should 

 be cleared away, following up this opera- 

 tion, as the necessity for it becomes appa- 

 rent, at intervals during the ensuing sum- 

 mer, after which the plants Avill largely 

 take care of themselves in this respect, but 

 rank grass at the sides should for several 

 jears be kept under control 1)y means of 



the scvthe. 



Should the seasons prove favourable 



growth will accordingly be rapid, and 

 rather than allow this to proceed unchecked 

 a slight cutting of the tops with the hedge 

 bill at midsummer would be time and labour 

 well spent. In the autumn following close 

 t^utting, to incline the hedge to the desired 

 «hape, may be practised. 



For agricultural land the square, or 

 upright, form of hedge meets witli most 

 favour, owing to the small space it occupies 

 at the base ; but where ornamentation with 

 utility is desire<l the slightly oval form will 

 give more sat^sfaction. The triangle, or 

 wedge shape, is well adapted for exposed 

 situations, as wind and snowstorms have 

 but little adverse effect thereupon. 



Flowering: Currants. 



The ribes, in various shades of colour, 

 make a good hedge where flowering shoots 

 in late spring are valued, and they bear 

 the trimming process very well. 



Dogrwoods 



Roses. 



Both green and variegated varieties of 

 the dogwood make excellent, compact, low 

 hedges, the coloured stems of which are 

 \-ery attractive when leafless. 



Recent additions to the various classes of 

 roses, more especially the Wi< huraiana 

 type,' have provided quite a new departure 

 in the making of hedges, for which purpose 

 several varieties are well adapted, con- 

 tinuing in great beauty and gracefulness, 

 both in regard to foliage and flowers, for 

 a long per'od. These, of course, must J^e 

 pruned, cutting away old and superabun- 

 dant growths, and, occasionally perhaps, 

 more severe measures, on the attainment 

 of aee and roughness. James Day. 



Galloway House, Garlieston. 



CotonesLster rotundif olia.— We 



"have had great additions to the cotoneaster 

 family within recent years, but this old 

 species still retains its position as one of 

 the best. The small, dark green, box-like 

 leaves are retained throughout the greater 

 part of the winter, and often at that period 

 thov assume a more or If'ss bronzv hue. The 

 >>errie-; arc hngflit scarlet in colour, and bom 



wh'lc. aK a rule. Uh'\ 



ALPINE FLOWERS FOR 



SUNNY LIMESTONE 

 ROCKERIES. 



It is not everyone who can afford to bring 

 stone from a distance for his rockeries, and 

 there are many in limestone districts who 

 have^ perforce, to build them of the native 

 stone J which is^ after all, an excellent 

 medium for the cultivation of alpine 

 flowers. Many, indeed^ of these gems of 

 the mountains grow naturally on limestone^ 

 and some of them, in fact^ will not thrive 

 unless they are supplied with a certain 

 amount of calcareous matter. But all lime- 

 lovers cannot stand a hot and sunny place^ 

 an<l, as there are many alpinists who have 

 a rockery with a full south expo.suie, a 

 few notes on the suitable plants will pro- 

 bably be of value to them. Otliers who 

 have rockeries of other stones and who 

 M'ish to cultivate any of these plants can 

 easily supply them with some limestone 

 ch:ps or old broken mortar mixed with the 

 soil. 



Some of the acamas, or New Zealand 

 Ihirs, neat little carpeters, as a rule, will 

 <lo well in such a place. A. argentea is 

 as ijood as anv, and :s handsome with its 

 silvery leaves. A. Buchanani, pea-green^ 

 will al&o thrive. They soon cover a good 

 space, and a group of some early bulb, 

 such as Scilla bifolia looks well spearing 

 through these acj:enas. A choice and some- 

 what difficult acantholimon, or Prickly 

 Thrift, called A. venustum, with spiny 

 leaves, and neat rose fliowei's. should 

 flourish if the place is quite well drained. A 

 few of the choicer achilleas, or yarrows, may 

 be chosen, A. argentea, sometimes called 

 Anthemis aizoon, being as good as any. 

 It has silvery, crinkled lea\es, and hears 

 daisy-like white flowers in summer. A. 

 rupestris, only some four inches high, is 



of rather prostrate habit, and has white 

 flowers. A. Clavennfe, also white, has pretty 

 silvery foliage. Some of the iethionemas, 

 or Lebanon candvtufts, are lovely little 

 plants for such a rockery. A*], cordifolium, 

 about six inches high, and rosy-pink, 

 is lovely, as is ^"E. grandiflorum, rosy- 

 pui pie. 



For an effective Ixtld plant, Aciphylla 

 Lyalli may be commended. This is one 

 of the Bayonet plants, striking things on 

 good-sized rockeries, with long, rigid, 

 sharp-pointed leaves. Such alyssums as 

 A. snxatile, the well-known Gold Dust, or 

 Madwort, will flourish, but some choicer 

 ones are alpestre and argenteum, both 

 yellow, and spinosum, white. Androsace 

 sarmentosa and A. foliosa are the best of 

 these exquisite flowers for limestone 

 rockeries, and either is loA-ely indeed, A. 

 sarmentosa being especially pretty. A. 

 C'humbyi is a fine variety of the latter. 

 Anthemis montana and A. macedtmifa are 

 both lovely little chamomiles with white 

 flowers, and about six inches high. Anthyl- 

 lis montana is a pretty Kidney Vetch, with 

 whitish leaves and rosy-purple flowers. 



Save in cold, wet districts, two snap- 

 dragons, named Antirrhinums avsarina, 

 white, and glutinosum, primrose, will give 

 pleasure. Quite a striking plant is Astra- 

 galus tragacantha, a spiny-looking plant, 

 with pale violet flowers, not often s 

 Practically, any aubrietia may be chosen 

 with confidence, and the curious little Cen- 

 taurea stricta, which often dies out else- 

 where, will grow in a satisfactory way. 

 Campanula garganica hirsuta is one of the 

 best of its race for limestone. Foi* rough 

 7-ockwork any of the cerastiiims may he 

 liDsen, but they spread too quicklv for 



places under these conditions, but, it mav 



ue said, not in all. 



. glaucous-leaA'ed pinks will make 



nice cushions of foliage and flower^ and 

 our nati^•e Dianthus caasius, the Cheddar 

 Pink, is quite at home. Erodium gutta- 

 tum, white, with deep blotches, is charm, 

 ing, and E. supracanum, pink^ is a lovely 

 thmg. Erysimum pulchelium, although a 

 little coarse, is a pretty hedge mustard^ 

 with yellow flowers in spring. The quaint 

 Euphorbia capitata gives heads of greenish- 

 yellow in plenty, though it is a trifle coarse 

 for association with choice plants. Genista 

 pilosa is a fine little woolly broom with 

 yellow flowers, and the lovely Geranium 

 argenteum, with pink, deeper-veined blos- 

 soms, is excellent. All the helianthemums, 

 or Sun Roses, delight in such a rockery, 

 and will give abundance of bright little 

 flowers. Lithospermum Gastoni is a choice 

 Gromwell for the limestone rockery, giving 

 charming flowers of blue. Then Lychnis 

 pyrenaica affords little heads of icd. An 

 oxytropis named campestris, though a trifle 

 caarse, has pretty yellow pea-shaped 

 blooms. 



Some of the spring pliloxes, such as The 

 Bride, Nelsoni, Fairy, atro]uu])urea, and 

 others are lovely with flowers of different 

 coloiu-s in spring. They ought not to be 

 forgotten. Potentilla valderia, with silvery 

 leaves, is a nice wh'te-flowered little plant. 

 For a lime-loving primula we have no 

 prettier thing than P. marginata, with 

 flowers of a kind of lilac, and silver-mar- 

 gined leaves. The silvery saxifrages, i.e., 

 those of the encrusted section, may all be 

 grown J but a word of caution is required, 

 and this is not to allow them to become 

 too drv at the I'oot in a season like the last. 

 They are all charming, from the tall S. 

 cotyledon to the minute S. csesia. 



■ 



Sedums, or stonecrops, are at home here, 

 and spathulifolium and obtusatuni are 

 among the best of a wide choice. As for 

 sempervivums, or houseleeks, their naine 

 is legion, and any of them will thrive. 

 Such a rockery is just the place for all the 

 cobAveb kinds, such as S. Laggeri and S. 

 arachnoideum. We may finish for the pre- 

 sent with the pretty little rock speedwell? 

 V. saxatilis, with blue flowers, with the 

 white variety, V. s. alba, and the pretty 

 trailing Vicia argentea^ with silvery leaves 

 and white flowers with purple markings. 



Such are some of the many lovely alpine 

 flowers which will adorn to perfection <jur 

 sunny limestone rockery, 



S. Arnott. 



( 



in gira! 



juot 'isMni . wlrio. as a rvile. 

 seem less palatable to birds than those of 

 some other species. — T. 



Ninall rockeries. Coronilhi iberica will give 

 prettv clusters of yellow flowers; and the 



PELARGONIUMS AS 



PYRAMIDS. 



It is not often that pelargoniums are seen 

 grown in pyramidal form, yet when so 

 treated they form exceptionally handsome 

 objects. There were two pyramids of this 

 popular bedding plant growing in the gar- 

 dens at Elsham Hall, Lincolnshire, the pic- 

 turesque country residence of S'r Francis 

 Astley-Corbett. Bart. These plants were 

 fully twelve feet in height, and were 

 planted round the outside of two round 

 beds eight feet in diameter. The tops oi 

 the plants were brought together to forfli 

 pyramids, and when in full flower the> 

 formed objects of especially beauty. T'^*" 

 variety is an old, but f ree-flower ng. on'^ 

 called Sultan, and the blooms are an in- 

 tense scarlet. The plants were struck from 

 cuttings in the year 18G8 by Mr. Gardner 

 when he first took up his duties as hea< 

 irardeiier at Elsham. The plants aic tnken 

 up every autiiinn, nnd ptitttMl. to lie Kt'[ ^ 

 dvu'ing the winter undei' gl;i>s. 1 licse 

 probably thv* onlv sj)ecimcris in the coU" 



J. 0. 



I 



]o\^]y Cyananthus'lobatus thrives in some try of such dimensions. 



