March 30, 1912. 



THE GARDENERS' MAGAZINE, 



261 



that our raisers will not try to increase 

 them in size, for should this occur there 

 will be a danger of losing the stiff erect 

 stem. I mention this because I have noticed 

 that some of the latest varieties from the 

 Continent are larger in size^ but the stems 

 are not so good, and when too large they 

 lose their decorative value. Tliis can be 

 seen in the varietie-s Ca'own Princess Char- 

 lotte and Johannesfeur. Neither do I think 

 disbudding should be practised for exhibi- 

 tion purposes^ for it lias a tendency to de- 

 ceive the public, which does not pay in the 

 long run. 



I only propose to give a short list of 'the 

 most distinct varieties at the present time, 

 feeling, as I do, that in the next few years 

 such a list will be quite out of date: Maurice 

 Kivoire, Souvenir de Chabanne, Albert 

 Maumene, Henri Farman, Baronne Roth- 

 schild, Gallia, Mad. E. Crozy, Exposition de 

 Lyon, Grand Papa Charmet, Souvenir de 

 Bernadeau, Mad. F, G. Bruant, and Mad. 

 Perrier, of the round-flowered type ; Dia- 

 mant. Diadem, Burgomaster Siefurth, 

 Betty, Leuchtfeur, Mad. L. Yiger, Meteor, 

 and Ehinekrone, of the starry type. 



LACHENALIAS IN BASKETS. 



WJien Cape Cowslips are "well grown iii 

 baskets^ large or small, they i&how oft to 

 ^rcat advantage, much more so than when 

 in pots, as the habit of growth^ flowers and 

 foliage is naturally of a pendant character. 

 Jn this way they are easily managed 

 j)ying space that would not be otherwise 

 utilised, and giving the opportunity to 

 .grow other subjects on shelves and stages 

 at a crowded period of the year. For in- 

 •stance, tlie r oof of a vinery or peach house 

 will suffice for a long time during growth, 

 -and when in flower there is no greater orna- 

 ment in the conservitory than a well-grown 



basket of lachenalias, especially of L. tri- 

 color 



the 



a 



or L. pendula. The foliage, also 

 IS attractive in colour, and is of 

 right type for covering the baskets and 

 ,p/^^'^S a setting for the flower spikes. 

 the rich golden-amber blossoms of L. Nel- 

 «oni, with its vigorous growth, make 

 ^ovely combination in the conservatory 

 ^vhere much greenery is usually employed. 



The making of baskets, wire or rustic, is 

 ■a simple matter; the size .should be accord- 

 ing to the number of bulbs in hand and 

 position for the plants when in flower. For 

 a bold display of the commoner forms as 

 1^. pendula and L. tricolor, a 'basket not less 

 than a foot in diameter will suffice. Early 

 in August is the time to make up the 

 baskets ; suspend them from a beam in the 

 l>otting shed, line th^ inside with flakes of 

 Sieen moss, place the bulbs inside the 

 basket with the growing point outwards in 

 «^<>ss, allowing at least two inches from 

 bulb to bulb. Fill in the bottom of the 

 basket With a suitable com-post of loam, 

 leat-niould, sand, and half-decomposed cow 



^^i^r^J^" ^^^^ basket is com- 



yieted with bulbs set all round and above, 

 It will contain a good mass of soil, which 

 jni maintain the bulbs in a vigorous state 

 Jjr at least two seasons, especially if during 

 ^ne second year liquid manure is given. 

 |ool treatment is best at all times 

 lacfienahas. ^ 



for 



is ai^ V deflexa.-This, which 



^aWi Calceolaria fuchsisefolia, is 



form? for its winter-flowering qualities. It 

 'ini,h^U^^^^. ^"^^^y specimen clothed with 



^nd tT; • t ^^Tf^ ^ ^^^P green colour, 

 from Solden-yellow blossoms are borne 



2>m autumn till the spring. Apart from 

 note ni^rit, it is also worthy of 



laria ll reputed parents, CaW 



^ ™ Calceolaria Burbidgei.— W. T. 



BORONIAS. 



Among the limited number of hard- 

 wooded plants that are popular nowadays 

 the boronias must be included, or at least 

 some of the members of the genus. They 

 are all natives of Australia, and all form 

 freely-branched, free-flowering shrubs. 

 These features stand them in good stead 

 under cultivation, for it is possible to have 

 neat bushy little specimens laden with 

 flowers in pots five to six inches in diameter. 



The species most generally cultivated are 

 three in numher— namely, Boronia elatior, 



The 



B. heterophylla, and B. megastigma 

 last-named is the first to bloom, as 



the 



earliest flowers may often ibe had by Christ- 

 mas, and a succession is kept up till the 

 end; of March or thei-eabouts. If pinched 

 during its earlier stages, Boronia mega- 

 stigma forms a freely-branche^:! little busli, 

 clothed ^yith very narrow leaves. While 

 the principal shoots are more or less ascend- 

 ing, the minor ones are disposed in a some- 

 what horizontal manner. From the under- 

 sides of these the flowers depend. They are 

 small, bell-shaped, and in colour chocolate 

 on the exterior, and yellowish within. A 

 well-flowered ispecimen is certainly very 

 pretty, but cannot by any stretch of ima- 

 gination be called showy, yet- the (blossoms 

 are so deliciously fi^ajgrant as to compensate 

 for any shortcomings, and for this reason 

 alone this boronia occupies a foremost posi- 

 tion among popular hard-wooded plants. 

 The .perfume is very suggestive of the violet, 

 and is so penetrating that a single speci- 

 men will make itself manifest throughout a 

 good sized structure. At the same time, 

 however, mmierous the plants, the scent is 

 not at all ovei-powering. Boronia mega- 

 stigma was introduced from South-west 

 Australia about forty years ago. A certain 

 amount of individual variation occurs 

 among the members of this species, for in 

 some the flowers are deeper tinted than in 

 others. The lighter-coloured flowers rather 

 surpass the darker ones in fragrance, in 

 the spring of 1903 a form with yellowisTi 

 blossoms was, under the name of Boronia 

 megastigma aurea, given an Award of 

 Merit by the Royal Horticultural Society, 

 but it does not appear to have made its 

 way into cultivation. 



Boronia heterophylla is a far showier 

 plant than the proceeding, while it is also 

 later in blooming, being, as a rule, at its 

 best in March and April. It is of compara- 

 tively rec^eiit introduction, for though 

 known to botanists for many years, it was 

 first grown in this country from seeds sent 

 to Kew by the late Miss North, the artist, 

 in 1881. The restilting plants flowei-ed in 

 1885, and this boronia was distributed by 

 Messrs. J. Veitch and iSons, of Chelsea, a 

 couple of years later. The flowers with 

 \^]iich tlie main shoots are closely packed 

 are globular in shape, and of a bright car- 

 mine colour. When in good conditioti a 

 specimen of this boix)nia is very sliowy. 

 The leaves vary a good deal in shape, hence 

 tlie s[)(HMfii' name of heterophylla, but, as 

 a rule, they are slender and narrow. The 

 blossoms of tliis spe<'ies do not possess the 

 fragrance of B. megastigma, but the lea\ , 

 when handled, give off a very unpleasant 

 odour. 



Boronia elatior is a more vigorous grow- 

 ing plant than either of the preceding, and 

 one that forms an admirable succession to 

 Boronia heterophylla. Of rather upright 

 and free growth, B. elatior is more densely 

 furnished with foliage than the others, and 

 the leaves being pinnate and bright green 

 in colour, it forms, irrespective of flowers, 

 a decidedly ornamental shrub. The blos- 

 soms, which are of a drooping urn shape, 

 are bright rosy-red in colour. 



Other species include Boronia serrulata, 



an old-time favourite, which used to be 

 considered a good test of the cultivator's 

 skill. It is a plant of rather spreading 

 habit, with curious trapeziforni leaves, and 

 rich rose-coloured flowers. Boronia alata, 

 B. Drumniondi, B. pinnata, B. polygaite- 

 folia, and B. tetrandra may also be men- 

 tioned, hut they ai"e very seldom seen. 



Boronias require much the same treat- 

 ment as epacris, heaths, and other hard- 

 wooded subjects; that is to say, the plants 

 should be shortened back into shape after 

 flowering^ and then encouraged to make 

 fresh growth by maintaining a genial atmo- 

 sphere. Should the plants need repotting 

 the best time to carry this out will be when 

 the young shoots are about half an inch 

 long. The soil should consist of fibrous 

 peat and sand. Especial care must be 

 taken to have the pots clean and effectually 

 drainefl, while it is most essential that the 

 new soil be pressed down very firmly, and 

 that the old ball of earth is not buried 



deepe 



W. T. 



PRUNING ROSES. 



After so many annual notes upon this 

 subject^ there can be little to add. and 



the following is simply a reminder rather 

 than an elaborate instruction. Pruning is 

 certainly one of the most important thmgs 

 in rose culture, and so there is no need to 

 excuse repetitions of reference to it. 



As I write, we are having wet weather 

 after severe frost, which immediately fol- 

 lowed an exceptionally mild winter, when 

 many roses had not ceased growing, the 

 consequence being a much greater quantity 

 of soft, unrij>ened wood than usual. So 

 much so that the present frosts cannot fail 

 to have punished them severely. There has 

 also been early or continuous growi;h, and 

 my chief object in noting this precocity is 

 to warn readers against the temptation to 

 prune earlier than usual. This should be 

 resisted J and is among those who give due 

 consideration to the danger of late spring 

 frosts, with which we are visited upon so 

 many occasions. 



Early pruning means early growth from 

 the buds left on the iplant. All have noticed 

 how persistently the top buds of any rose- 

 growth break first; and, if we make it 

 impossible for this to be from any but the 

 small number left after pruning, it stands 

 to reason we shall be getting the growth 

 too forward for average safety. Left un- 

 pruned, the top growi:h is really a great 

 advantage, as it keeps the lower eyes dor- 

 mant much longer, simply because those 

 above have used the early sap. This is 

 clearly seen among pegged-down roses ; for, 

 unless the sap is staye^l from rushing to 

 the top at once, we have a large number 

 of dormant eyes below, which, if secured 

 in a horizontal position, would break and 

 produce by far the best flowers. 



Nor would I be much inclined to prune 

 earlier because of a mild March. Quite the 

 end of the month, and the first week in 

 Aprils have proved the most serviceable 

 times with me, and no illusive genial 

 weather will tempt me to prune earlier. 

 We notice how very rapidly growth un- 

 checked overtakes that which has been 

 checked, and we obtain the former bv later 

 pruning tha'U many practise. 



How to prune is a worn-out subject, but 

 I would like to say a word against leaving 

 crowded growths, even among the long 

 rods or trails of the weeping and rambling 

 varieties. A smaller number, and these 

 the best, will often give better results. It 

 is also most essential that all wood upon 

 this class of rose should be well matured. 



ROSARIAN. 



