April, 1890. 
75 
least in this latitude. In any event, much 
is gained by making up a cold frame in the 
early part of the month. By early sowing 
we get flowers from some biennials and 
perennials that would not otherwise bloom 
till the second year. 
The Aquilegias or Columbines are all 
handsome, free-blooming border perennials. 
They are hardy and easily raised from seed. 
Among the best are Aquilegia chrysantha , 
A. ccerulea, A. glandulosa and A. caryoph- 
ylloides. Our native Columbine, A. Cana- 
densis, is about as pretty as any of them. 
There are few annuals more beautiful 
than Phlox Drummondii. It is deservedly 
a great favorite with all who know it. The 
colors are bright, and suffi- 
ciently varied to suit all tastes. 
Within a few years a number 
of new varieties have been 
introduced ; all very beauti- 
ful and some unique, P. 
Drummondii grandiflora, a re- 
cent introduction, is the large- 
flowered section, and is much 
to be preferred. P. D. cuspi- 
data, “Star of Quedlinburgh,” 
quite new. is a very singular 
and interesting departure 
from the normal form. The 
tooth or centre of each petal 
projects a quarter of an inch 
or more, which gives the flow- 
er the appearance of a five- 
pointed star. It is very odd 
hut pretty. Another novelty 
is P. D. cuspidata , “Light 
Ball.” The flowers are like 
the preceding, but are closer 
and stiffer. The plant is a 
compact , gl obe - 1 ik e little bush , 
seldom exceeding six inches 
in height. These novelties will 
be liked. All the Phloxes 
transplant easily, and bloom 
early and constantly. Few 
plants are more generally use- 
ful, whether in pots, boxes, 
beds, or the border. 
The new Shirley Poppy, 
judging from the praise it receives in Eng- 
land, where it originated, is a remarkably 
beautiful strain of this popular flower. The 
flowers are semi-double, and the colors va- 
ried andveiy brilliant, the result of long- 
continued selection. In the cut state the 
flowers are said to be more lasting than the 
common Poppy. This seems to be a new 
thing worth trying. If you want many 
flowers on your Poppies you must leave 
only a few seed vessels to ripen. Remove 
them as soon as the flowers decay. Poppy 
seed may be sown as late as May. 
For edgings and little out-of-the-way 
places, (sunny ones,) Zennia elegant “Tom 
Thumb” is a very good plant. It is a 
dwarf, compact variety, growing from six 
to twelve inches high. It blooms freely, 
the flowers resembling those of the Pompon 
Indianapolis, the cup presented by Mrs. 
President Harrison for the best seedling. 
It has also been awarded a silver medal by 
the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society and 
First Premium by the New Jersey Floricul- 
tural Society. Its form seems to be neither 
Japanese nor Chinese, rather a new type, 
being quite globular. In color it is equally 
distinct, the lower half of the flower being 
of a rich, deep pink, shaded with bright 
purple rose ; in the upper portion, a pure, 
snowy white. The flower is large, said to 
have been exhibited seven and a half inches 
in depth by six and a half in diameter. 
Petals are very large, broad and solid. The 
plant is a fine grower, sturdy and robust. 
Its charming, incurved flowers are very 
beautiful, and there will be 
few chrysanthemum lovers 
content without the addition 
of Ada Spaulding to their 
collections, be they large or 
small. The flower takes its 
name from the daughter of 
its originator, Thomas H. 
Spaulding, of Orange, N. J. 
Nicotiana Afltnis. 
A novelty, which has at- 
tracted a good deal of atten- 
tion from visitors, is the Nico- 
tiana affinis. A lady friend 
sent me a plant in §i small 
thumb pot which she had 
raised from seed, for it is an 
annual. After being bedded 
out it grew about three feet 
high and bloomed profusely all 
summer. There were often 
as many as seventy flowers on 
it at once. The flowers are 
velvety-white, about three 
inches long, the top star- 
shaped. The spikes of flow- 
ers — which have a carnation- 
like fragrance — can be cut 
and placed in water in the 
house where the flowers will 
( open in succession for a week 
or more quite as well as in the 
garden. The Nicotiana is a 
night bloomer — the flowers 
begin to open about six P. M. — but emits 
no fragrance till sunset, and soon after 
sunrise the fragrance departs and the 
flowers close for the day. I think the 
Nicotiana must be a near relative of the 
sorrowful tree — so named because it 
flourishes only at night — which grows on 
the island of Goa near Bombay. The 
flowers which have a fragrant odor appear 
soon after sunset the year round, and close 
up or fall off as the sun rises. I have looked 
over many catalogues but fail to find any- 
thing about the Nicotiana. — Mrs. C. G. 
Furbish. 
CATARRH CURED. 
A clergyman, after years of suffering from that loath- 
some disease Catarrh, and vainly trying every known 
remedy, at last found a prescription which completely 
cured and saved him from death. Any sufferer from 
this dreadful disease sending a self-addressed stamped 
envelope to Prof. J. A. Lawrence, 88 Warren Street, 
NewYork, will receive the recipe free of charge.— Adv. 
class. Sow the seed now, and transplant. 
The Ageratum, in some of its forms, has 
long been a favorite. The plants are dwarf 
and free blooming, and are useful in many 
ways. The Mexican species and its vari- 
eties are annuals. Little Gem, blue, and 
Tom Thumb, white, are the best. They are 
easy to raise from seed, and transplant 
readily. Being constant bloomers, they 
make good winter bloomers as pot plants. 
They are also easily propagated from cut- 
tings. 
Nicotiana affinis is not a plant for the 
trade ; but it should have a place in the gar- 
den if only for the delicious fragrance of 
Ada Spaulding Chrysanthemum. 
its flowers. It is raised from seed, which 
are very small, and should be sown on the 
surface. It transplants easily. It blooms 
best when the plants are grown separately. 
Ten Week Stocks (Mathiola) might be 
grown more than they are. To a certain 
class of flower lovers they are quite un- 
known. The flowers are fragrant, and are 
very useful in the cut state. The colors are 
various. The seed should be sown early, 
and the young plants, when well out of the 
seed leaf, should be pricked out in shallow 
boxes, to be finally transferred to the bed 
or border as soon as the weather permits. — 
P. B. Mead. 
Ada Spaulding Chrysanthemum. 
The subject of our illustration was one of 
the finest novelties among chrysanthemums 
of last season and succeeded in winning, at 
