^November i, 1S81.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
477 
lake u]i the nitrogen present in ammonia, that ammonia 
pornst be changed into a nitrate. And all over the glohe 
the ferments in livo cultivated soil are busy changing 
the useless, we may even say the harmful, ammonia into 
the beneficial nitrate. 
This one ferment change going on in live soil has 
Already been fairly worked out; but in all probability 
it is mercl.\ on., of a vast number of similar changes 
going on in the earth, of whose existence we have in- 
dications, but concerning which our knowledge is im- 
perfect and inexact. I am treading now on dangerous, 
Mltr6dden ground, where we sadly need the light of 
carefid experimental research ; but I feel confident that 
future inquiry will justify the view that good rich soil 
is ever in travail, seething in molecular strife for the 
lien, lit of the plant, that the earth is not merely a 
Storehouse whence the herb chaws directly the material 
if , but rather serves at once as kitchen and stomach, 
where food is both cooked and digested, in order that 
the rootlets may take it already prepared for further 
use, and the cells for which it is intended be saved 
many a laborious task. The plmt, in fact, is fed by 
the soil, rather than feeds on the soil; all vegetable 
organisms are, as it were, parasites on Mother Earth. 
Nor is this view refuted by the fact that many plants 
may be cultivated on pure useless sand, watered with 
appropriate saline solutions, or even in the solutions 
W mselves apparently free from all the ferments of 
which I have spoken; for every living organism has 
almost unbounded powers of adaptation, and will make 
shift for itself under widely different countries. Plants 
thus -Town may live, but do not flourish. I, however, 
am speaii 
what thej 
eircumstai 
sideling w 
den. is pr. 
of 
tti .saline solutions. — DlETES. 
(To be continued.) 
jtion which we are con- 
when we sea market gar- 
eir produce in large vats 
SUB-TROPICAL GARDENING. 
(Field, lOtfi Sept. 1881.) 
This kind of gardening was introduced in order to 
Moid the eternal round of geraniums, calceolarias, and 
a few other common bedding plants, which, however 
worthy of culture they may be, can hardly be said to 
■gnvey any adequate idea of the riches of the plant 
world capable of cultivation out of doors in oiu' climate. 
For some years, however, the very name proved sufficient 
l<> (liter many from Riving tho system a trial, from 
the erroneous notion that only tropical vegetation — the 
■jnates of our stoves — was admissible. This arose 
through Musas, Caladinms, and similar tender plants 
• • ,i • recommended in the first instance, together with 
oostl) preparations for supplying bottom heat, special 
K./iK Ac, all of which were at one time considered 
p Bary. Hut not only have such unsuitable subjects 
been generally discarded, but more recent events have 
noted that even better and more lasting results can be 
attained by the use of plants of even a much hardier 
character than soft-wooded bedding plants, the sole re- 
■Meutatavcs "f out-door decoration some twenty years 
Bfo, Now. with the rich store of fiue-foliagcd plants 
bom temperate climes at command, it is quite possible 
to have a beautiful garden of hardy plants alone: for 
such Bllbjects as the Ailantns, Paulownias, and other 
flne-leavcl shrubs make beautiful beds if cut down close 
to the ground every year like herbaceous plants. We have 
alw) the har.ly palm (Chamiorops), noble yucca--, and 
Kraeeful bamboos, tho beauty of which can hardly be 
| exoelluil by any of tiie inmates of .,ur stoves; and as 
■gkrds dwarfer subjects suitublc for edgings, we have 
wwh hardy plants as Sicbolds's plantain lily (Fuukial, 
DttnthUHOg, and plants of a similar character; while 
amongst plants that are annually raised from seeds, 
[20 
from the various sectio 
and one great advanta; 
for central objects in g 
the turf, is that, win 
incut during summer, 
door 
inter 
i protection of glass to start them, 
y between the stately Ricinus or 
he dwarf Centaurca or Chama> 
ict colour or form. It is by selection 
is that the best residts are obtained, 
i of using permanent plants in pots 
Dups, or as isolated specimens on 
a they add variety to the arrange 
;hey can be taken up and utilised 
is soon as the beauty of the out- 
fade. In this way a maximum of 
may be enjoyed from both the 
*arden, according to the 
d plants 
properly, become a source of pleasure, affording as they 
do distinct phases of beauty. One tires of the continual 
repetition of the same class of plants, however well or 
tastefully they may be arranged ; and by having totally 
distinct types of vegetation in separate divisions, such 
as the sub-tropical in one, carpet beds in another, and 
flowering plants hi another, the result will be a well- 
varied and interesting garden. 
Although tender plants in pots are decidedly effective 
for special occasions, in a general way any plants that 
are not able to stand out of doors from the first week 
in June until the last week in September can hardly be 
called fit for summer bedding. Amongst the most suitable 
are several kinds of palms, such as Seafprthia elegans ; 
Channcrops excelsa and C. humilis ; Aralias of various 
sorts ; Dracaena australis and D. indivisa ; Phonnium tenax 
and its variegated form ; Yucca aloifolia variegata ; 
Hedychium gardnerianum, a noble-foliaged as well as 
a beautiful flowering plant ; Ficus elastica, or indiarubber 
plant, a useful plant, cither as a large or small 
specimen ; and Eucalyptus globulus, the bluish-grey tint 
of which is quite unique in its way. Erytlninas make 
fine autumn beds ; being very brilliant in colour, they 
are useful for lighting up sombre masses of foliage. 
Bamboos have such beautiful feathery foliage, that, when 
the winter is too severe to trust them out, they should 
be utilised as large pot plants for pliuiging out of 
doors in summer ; they luxuriate on the margins of 
water, and look particularly well in irregular groups or 
clumps. Abutilons are particularly well adapted for 
open-air decoration, either planted or plunged ; Abutilon 
Boule de Neige, Boule d'Or, and Darwini are all good; 
A. tcsselatum and A. Thompsoni are also Very effective, 
the markings of the foliage being rich and varied. The 
hardiest tree fern, Dicksonia antarctica, looks well 
plunged in shady dells where a good canopy of over- 
hanging foliage gives shelter and shade ; and several 
varieties of dwarf ferns, such as the Bird's-ncst Fem, 
are admirably adapted for undergrowth to the above. 
Plants raised from seed will, however, form the majority 
in most places, from the lack of room under glass for 
sheltering many large plants. Of these the most gener- 
ally useful are ( annas 
very hard seeds, which 
sown). If sown hi Fel 
fine plants for bedding 
flowers rich in colour, 
manent, and increase 
(called Indian shot, from their 
require soaking before they are 
nary, in strong heat, they make 
that foliage is lovely, and the 
The underground roots are por- 
a size and strength every year. 
They may be taken np and wintered under glass, or 
securely protected in the soil by means of external 
coverings. The splendid masses of eannas one sees in 
the public parks are generally protected in winter. The 
tall light-green-foliagcd varieties make excellent centres 
for groups, as they mostly (lower freely, and the dwarf or 
broiizy-foliaged sorts are good for edging. A new variety, 
called Adrienne Robin, is very good. In addition to 
seeds, eannas are readily increased by division of the 
roots. Tho castor-oil plant is perhaps the noblest we 
have that can be raised from seeds. The latter should 
be sown in February in heat, and the young plants 
shifted on as required. They often grow from Sft. to 
10ft. high, with foliage nearly a vard in width. Th« 
