212 



GA RDENERS MAG A ZINE. 



April 



2 > 1898. 



T 



B 



Mari 



The genus of South African composites known as Dimorphotheca is 

 closely allied to the better known Calendula. It contains twenty or so 

 species, and these, by reason of the slender and slightly bent stems 



Vegetables for Exh _ 



Summer Onions for Exhibition 7"' 



DURING the last few years very great strides have 'been n»H 

 production of exhibition onions, which now form on* f u e 1 



rs¥ Amw iran-afnKlo ehrmrc rinrinnr cnrv>«.-„ _ vine 01 the 



species, and these, by reason of the slender and slightly bent stems production ot exniDition onions, which now form one of tV 111 



supporting the flower heads, were formerly known as bending-stalked at our vegetable shows during summer, autumn, and winte v attraction s 



marigolds, an appropriate, but not euphonious title. The species are will stand much chance of winning in a class for a collect -^o exhibitor 



either annual herbs or perennial and shrubby ; the leaves are usually (onions should be included in all collections, large or sm"m .?«i VCg ? labIes 

 narrow, entire, and more or less toothed or cut. The flower heads vary 

 in colour from white to scarlet, and when well developed are about three 

 inches across. So far as cultivation is concerned they are very easily 



managed ; being half hardy they may be used for the flower garden selected during early autumn, and a light," airy^onen 0mons , must t* 



during the summer and for greenhouse decoration during the winter. chosen. It is not at all necessary to change the srounlT i° uld 



The perennial species are readily propagated from cuttings if given a »*mw«iUj « ™ th* wmp nW» ^ ~ j T , * na lor ti crn* 



little extra warmth until rooted. For the annuals it is only necessary to 

 sow seeds in heat during February and March, gradually hardening off 



None of 



ment made m ttie varieties now grown, the cultivation ic " i m P*ove. 

 better understood. In the first place the site for the much 



col*W*»rl Hnrinar Aarlv antlimn on/1 o • OniOnS II)llSf k* 



the seedlings, so that they are ready for planting out in May. 

 the species like over much moisture, so that when grown in pots they 

 should have ample drainage afforded and be placed in a sandy compost 

 that is otherwise fairly rich, 



The white flowered Dimorphothecas are : — D. annua, from Simon's 

 Bay, introduced as far back as 1752. D. Tragus, a large-flowered species 

 with purple or bronze shading along the underside of the ray florets ; 

 during the summer the flower heads commence to expand about seven 

 a.m., and are fully open soon after mid-day, but by three o'clock they 

 begin to fold up again. D. graminifolia has grassy foliage and big heads 

 consisting of purplish disk florets, and rays that are white above and 

 brownish orange below. D. pluvialis, D. hybrida, D. medicaulis, and 

 D. fruticosa all have white ray florets with either purple or yellow along 

 the lower side, or in the disk florets. A newer introduction is D. 

 Ecklonis that seems fairly plentiful in the neighbourhood of Port 

 Elizabeth. Collected specimens are much more dwarf than those culti- 

 vated in this country, the latter attaining a height of eighteen inches 

 at flowering time in the month of July. Whether this will become 

 popular it is difficult to say, but it is easily grown from imported seed and 

 has been flowered as a bedding plan at Kew. The species is shrubby at 

 the base and clothed with oblanceolate, subsessile leaves sparingly 

 toothed, and pale green. The flower heads measure three inches across 

 and, as seen in the illustration, contain about sixteen white ray florets 

 each, these being striped and shaded with violet — save for a white margin 

 —on the lower surface ; the small disk florets are also of a blue shade. 



Species with brighter flower heads are fairly numerous, and some of 

 them are so attractive that they seem to invite improvement by means of 

 selection of seedlings. D. aurantiaca, referred to by Aiton, and figured 

 in the Bo/. Mag. t. 408, or just a hundred years ago, produces bright 

 orange coloured ray florets as its name implies. D. chrysanthemifolia 

 introduced about 1790 is an early flowering species with bright yellow 

 rays and dark disk florets ; D. dentata introduced about the same time, 

 is also yellow. I), cuneata, better known, perhaps as Arctotes glutinosa, 

 is remarkable for its clammy or sticky leaves and stems ; it is also a very 

 bright plant the ray florets being of the deepest orange or orange-scarlet 

 shade. D. Barbarue, introduced from Caffraria in 1862, has purplish 

 flower heads, and is synonymous with D. lilacina ; it is perennial, and 

 well repays attention as a greenhouse plant. K. P. 



soil 



annually, as on the same piece of ground 1 hav^sutte^iw 8 a0f 

 our exhibition onions for some years with a visible inmroJimL gIOW ? 

 season. In endeavouring to produce fine exhibition bulbs the Mi ea ° h 

 conditions must be secured : (1) A very rich deep^ 

 (2) sowing the seed early in the year under glass, and (%) akL ^ 

 young plants every encouragement before planting out As to th/t 

 of trenching up the ground, much depends on the nature of t£ 1 

 one has to deal with. On all kinds of light soils this is best done in X 

 autumn but when it is stiff and heavy, the top soil should be forked »I 

 to the depth of about ten inches m the autumn and left in a quite ronit 

 state, the trenching being delayed till quite the end of February or X 

 beginning of March, and only done in fine weather. Too much man™ 

 can hardly be applied, and nothing is better than that from the farmyard 

 but on heavy wet land, burnt garden refuse, road scrapings, or old mortS 

 rubbish should be liberally added. The trenching must be thoroughly 

 done, at least two feet six inches deep, better still three feet, breaking ud 

 the bottom, on which should be placed from five to six inches of the 

 longest of the manure, putting another layer of the shorter material about 

 ten inches from the top. I am aware many people advise keeping the 

 lower soil at the bottom, but this I consider a half-hearted measure, and 

 aim at making the whole depth of soil good ; this cannot surely be 

 accomplished when the lower spit is kept buried from the air and 

 the action of the weather. This applies especially to the onion bed when 

 intended to be kept as such for some years. Whether the trenching be 

 done in autumn or spring, no attempt should be made to break up the 

 soil, but leave it in as rough a state as possible and apply a good coating 

 of soot and lime as soon as finished. Leave in this state till the first or 

 second week in April (or as soon after as the weather will allow and 

 then prepare to plant out. Fork over the ground to the depth of about 

 eight inches, breaking up all lumps as finely as possible, add another 

 slight dressing of soot and Smyth's fertiliser, rake down neatly and 

 mark out the rows and alleys. The beds should be formed from 

 eight to ten feet in width, and the rows should be fifteen inches apart, 

 allowing one foot from plant to plant. Nothing is gained by overcrowd- 

 ing. Boards should be used to walk on when planting. 



Sowing the seed and preparing the young onions prior to planting 

 out, as before mentioned, is of the utmost importance, as from the very 

 first it is necessary to build up strong and sturdy plants. For some years 

 I practised sowing the seed in sixty-sized pots, but I have come to the 

 conclusion that boxes answer the purpose equally well, and they have 

 this advantage, that they are much more convenient, occupy less room, 

 and so many more can be grown in the same space that there is a better 

 selection of plants at planting time. The same kind of boxes as recom- 

 mended for early peas and beans are very suitable, being two feet in 

 length, one foot in width, and four and a half inches deep. They should 



"~ "'«'w 6 .iij uiaiucu, using s>ume luugu uuiuus - «. 



vent the soil mixing with it. The soil I recommend is two parts good 

 fibrous loam, one part well-decayed leaf soil, and one part of half-rottel 

 horse-droppings, that from a spent mushroom bed being preferable to 

 any other ; add sufficient road sand to keep the whole porous. The sea 

 must not be used when wet, but should be placed under cover some time 



nrAi'lnnc TL. - I- i i 11 Li «J .t.Wknnh a niiarteMDO 



ie top, 



waning u quite nrm. The seed should De sown uuuiy, 



with the finest soil ; press down firmly with a smooth piece ol ware, 



and well water in r^^, .u„ ,,.«. t-u* inth nf T^nuarv is the best n» 



Potatos for Exhibition — I always read with the greatest possible 

 pleasure the Morning Mixture prepared for us by " Lux." It is easy to take, and 

 generally has a beneficial effect. I must thank him for the honour he does me 

 in reading my articles, and if, under the above heading, I may seem to be a little 

 m fault, it is because I have endeavoured to deal with the production of high- 

 class vegetables for all purposes, and because " Lux " had surely not read the 

 second part of my article (divided by the editor) when he wrote. I do not for 



one moment suppose that every reader of the Gardeners' Magazine is in a — " *~ vvlich wet, dui snouiu uc F m«- t u m — . . 



position to put in force all my suggestions, but I never mention any but what I previous to use. The whole should be passed through a q u arter-«» 

 o,?r n ,,i P° S8lb ' e f f; om Poetical experience, and which are being carried out in sieve, and then filled into the boxes to within half an inch of the toft 



our practice here at the present time. I advise " Peter " to worry his master for •-- - J — • 



a tew suitable pots and a good heated pit ; and thes-. gained, he will then, I am 



certain, be able to give good returns for the small outlay. I am looking forward and well water m"' F^nHkTw tn'ih* loth of Tanuary is the best ti« 



Crons of p*+.,# A <, r . .. . welL 1 have seen very fine onions grown by a cottager who naa 



h«Tr P i •t a i° S *T I observe y° ur humorous" correspondent " Lux » other convenience for SiSS thTJed and nursing on the young pU»» 



wis done m the Hooper competition some years ago) was one thing, but to grow 



E fl Y j ty , tons per acre was q uite another. I should think it was. I 

 TW„ ♦ 1 wonderful crops of this nature, but have never seen them ; 



k T mL£f a ° r u' ? me seven and a half bushels per rod ! Who has ever lifted 



SoKSm Z° ni f Shds rod » a ver Y heav y «°P 18 a » k now. A greater 

 famoiw &Z*™ iC ^bers, fit food for cattle, but not for man. The 



pounds of £w *ST tUl0n referred to ' for the heaviest produce from single 

 H these weTe obtaWH ^v 05 ' S - reSult in the P^ucdon of marvellous crop,, 

 moisture £S£S^*SZ£**& Sub -> eCtin g the tuberS t0 Warmth and 



fully attended to 

 exhibition bulbs. 



cap- 

 rine 



This grower (who is a large pnze-wi nner/ ^ 



were pricked out in xne <-uiu u»- — 

 till planted out in April, the result 



there's a way. 

 be handled no time 



OB 



As soon a°s the young plants are above tne «ju 

 ^should be lost in pricking ^^^3 



■jc luinuiea no time should be lost m pricking tnem ^ rj-fbone tB* 



using the same kind of compost, but adding a six-inch pottui m ^ t 

 to every bushel of soil. No chill must be given at this stag , ^ 

 better to perform the work in the temperature in whicn inc K ^ 



S? bXwTuKr'Siouf an ,{ -<WUy planted crop will produce one half 

 select just what I nrefa : for nl™»;« th u ,espect t0 *«* of 1 like alwa y s to 



the autumn. liK^&S&SS the M ^ °{ the Cr °P takes P kce in 

 two to three ounces. It hL Z.r , J ? andsom «t tubers I can find, that range from 



best average results, because in !," sh . own ' n Surrey that two-ounce sets give the 



when larger sets are employed P N? Wg , therC iS ^ WaSte than is ^ he «« 

 That is enough for all ouroo^ a ^ t v. needs more than one & ood stou t shoot, 

 fve as strong as will one of six or ounces.-A 0 "!) * tW °'° UnCe set wUl 



three inches apart all ways. Continue to grow them in a i ie f^ ^^i 

 about 55 to 60 degrees, and as near the glass as pass ic . , 



frequently. I n bright weather shade if ™ ces5a ?J°Z L*^***. 

 and otherwise give every encouragement to qpfck heffl ^thj 



the plants become well established stir up the soil bet* veen ^ ^ 

 pointed stick and remove to a light and more a try ^pos' abundafl J 

 brick pit being the best place. Syringe twice dat ly and . jam m d 

 of air when the weather will allow, removing the light auo* 



