August 14, 1884. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
141 
he will find after he has had a few more plants from nurseries 
that this Rose is not a good grower. I have seen it in twenty 
gardens this year—in some cases dead, and in all regarded as 
difficult to establish; but it is wonderful what grand blooms even 
small plants will produce. I hope both your correspondent and 
“D., Deal,” may be right in their opinions, but at present they 
must allow me to think that I attach a little more weight to the 
practice of “ One who Knows ” than to either of them, especially 
as a grower of at least 50,000 Roses told me that nine-tenths of 
the blooms exhibited of A. K. Williams wei’e cut from plants 
that had not been disturbed since the buds were inserted. 
I MUST have a “ thought ” on seed Potatoes. “ B.” attaches far 
more importance to changing seed than I do. The finest crop of 
Ashtops I have seen this year, and with little doubt one of the 
finest crops ever grown, was from “ seed ” raised by the cultivator 
in the same garden for more than thirty years. With care in 
selection, preservation, and preparation for planting, I think 
there is no degeneration—at least, in the Ashtop varieties. I 
have bought seed of these for a dozen years from a dozen different 
places, and not in one instance have the resulting crops been in 
favour of the purchased seed. With later sorts the case has 
been different, and Scotch-grown seed has usually proved the 
best; but this only means that southern-gi-own and earlier- 
ripened tubers were more forward, and the early growths displaced 
before planting, as it is not easy to retard several sacks, while 
there is little or no difficulty in having a bushel or two of kidneys 
just as we wish to see them. 
Be. Pateeson’s observation relative to the proximity of the 
Hen-and-Chickens Marigold, and Hen-and-Ohickens Daisy, and 
the possibility of the latter influencing the former, will possibly 
have provoked a smile of incrudulity on the part of some matter- 
of-fact individual who is a non-believer in occult “ influences ” of 
this kind. There may have been nothing whatever in the doctor’s 
supposition, but unless I am misinformed there is a sort of 
sympathy among plants that has been turned to practical account 
in the establishment of new varieties—these having been the 
result of simply intermixing the growths, of evergreens for in¬ 
stance, which has predisposed to sporting, and the sports have 
been fixed by propagation. This I am informed has been done; 
and my informant being the person who asserts he has done it, 
I am not prepared to laugh in derision at a suggestion that opens 
up a field of thought on a most interesting if obscure subject. I 
wonder if anyone else thinks this little matter worth thinking 
about. 
In the illustration on page 123 attention is directed to a very 
distinct and beautiful Primula. Grown as represented Primula 
sikkimensis must have a charming appearance. I have never so 
seen it, but have proved its value for pots for conservatory deco¬ 
ration. As its adajDtability for that piirpose does not seem to 
be mentioned in the excellent article on the page quoted, I 
thought the omission worth noting in the interest of those who 
wish to have their greenhouses and conservatories as variedly 
attractive as possible during the late spring months. 
My last thought this week is that Mr. Bai'ron is as lucky as he 
must be worthy. It falls to the lot of few men to have two gold 
watches presented to them within twelve months, and I think if 
two were presented to me (what a wild thought!) I should en¬ 
deavour to keep at least one of them. Mr. Barron will make a 
similar endeavour no doubt, and let us hope he will succeed, or 
giving gold watches will go out of fashion, and I shall have to be 
content with my old silver “ ticker.”— A Thinkee. 
DWARF CHRYSANTHEMUMS. 
Where dwarf plants are in demand for decoration in small pots, 
and effective arrangements are required either in the conservatory or 
dwelling house, it is necessary to grow plants specially, and as suitable 
for the purpose as possible. However dwarf and well grown Chrys¬ 
anthemums may be in from 6 to 10-inch pots, they cannot always be 
employed amongst other small dwarf-flowering or foliage plants to 
present a light and effective appearance. When propagated early 
they often grow too large for many positions, and instead of produc¬ 
ing a pleasing effect would be unsightly. For standing amongst and 
rising above groups of Ferns, Primulas, Cyclamens, Zonal Pelargo¬ 
niums, or Hjmcinths arranged tastefully together nothing is more 
serviceable than a good batch of Chrysanthemums of the large free- 
flowering types rooted at once in 4-inch pots, and not shifted into 
larger afterwards. 
Strong cuttings should be selected of such varieties as Elaine, 
James Salter, Early Red Dragon, Parasol, Mrs. Dixon, Mrs. G. 
Rundle, Beverley, Empress of India, Queen of England, and many 
others, including late-flowering varieties, and inserted in the centre 
of the pot in which they are intended to flower. Cuttings root freely 
at this season in cold frames if they are kept close and well shaded 
from strong sun until rooted ; they should then be hardened and 
grown outside the same as those propagated earlier in the season. 
All side shoots must be removed as they are produced, and the plants 
finally disbudded to one, two, or three flowers. If one is taken the 
crown or centre bud may be selected ; if more, this must be removed, 
and the plants will branch into three shoots, upon which terminal 
buds will be produced. On these small plants we gener.illy have 
only one good bloom, and never more than two. It is surprising how 
beautiful these are when freely arranged amongst other plants, for 
they will not exceed 18 inches in height. 
That beautiful variety, Soeur Melanie, is grand for this purpose, 
and single plants can be grown well in 3-inch pots. This is allowed 
to grow to a single stem the same as the others until it branches the 
last time, when the whole of the shoots produced are left and two 
or three buds towards the end of each shoot. The last-named variety 
and the majority of free-flowering Pompons make most lovely 
decorative plants if inserted thickly together now in 4, 5, and 6-inch 
pots, and then grown on after they are rooted without stopping, 
pinching, or even disbudding. Plants rooted now and grown without 
staking or tying are more useful and effective in many gardens than 
those raised months earlier. Such plants as have been described can 
be arranged with effect on the side stages of small houses or conser¬ 
vatories in conjunction with Primulas and other dwarf plants, while 
those grown in larger pots and staked would be out of place unless 
the stage to be filled is very wide, and the pot and lower part of the 
plant where the stakes are visible can be entirely hid from view by 
other plants. When arrangements have to be low and not on the 
banking system early-propagated plants are almost useless for the 
purpose ; however, the stems may be bent and twisted for the purpose 
of keeping them dwarf and low. For effective arrangements 
twisted formal specimens must be ignored, for they cannot be used 
without making a break amongst other small flowering plants. The 
late striking of Chrysanthemums for purposes of decoration is not 
practised so much as it deserves to be, for the most lovely little 
natural looking specimens can be produced that can be used in almost 
any position and enable the cultivator to make telling aiTangements 
that it would be impossible to make with the plants generally seen 
and grown for the purpose.— Scientia. 
MELON PLANTS DECAYING. 
Me. Bardney, like myself, seems to have a fair share of diseases and 
other evils to contend with in his gardening career. It is, however, no 
consolation to know this, but it is more satisfactory to find that he is in 
a position to point out the cause of the sudden decay of the Melon plants. 
From the first I was under the impression that the sudden collapse of part 
or the whole of a plant was due to the excess of sap over and above what war 
needed to meet the demands of the plant during dull weather. In cleas 
sunny weather there was nothing the matter, but directly we experienced 
dull sunless weather the evaporation was suddenly materially checked, and 
then followed the collapse. In two different gardens beside our own, 
where I saw these failures, the glass had been rather heavily shaded with 
limewash during the prevalence of very hot weather, and in our case the 
remedy was the removal of the greater portion of the shading, the increase 
of fire heat, and the admittance of more air or less water given at the 
roots. This lessened the supply of sap and increased evaporation, with 
the result of saving some of the plants that had already lost several healthy 
leaves in the peculiarly strange manner before described. Now we are 
having clear weather no difficulty is experienced, the disease being very 
different from the common canker.—W. I. 
ROSES—THE AFTERMATH. 
I pruned, as last year, about the first days of March—feeling perhaps 
more uncertain than usual as to the results. It will be remembered there 
was much correspondence in the Journal, and that correspondence was 
not encouraging. On the 15th of May I went out, and was obliged to 
remain away from my garden quite two months. The first Rose bloom 
was nearly over on my return. The gardens I had visited, chiefly in the 
west of England, and the Rose shows I had attended, exhibited, as a 
whole, fewer collections and specimens of merit than I had observed for 
years, and the general impression appeared to be that the Rose year had 
not been so good as usual. A long spell of east wind prevailed every¬ 
where, and when warmth came there was not moisture enough to balance 
the drought; yet, spite of the intense sunshine, dark Roses seemed less 
scorched than usual. 
But the Rose season of 1884 is not yet over, and I believe the best has 
yet to come. At last, towards the end of July, dull grey skies and torrents 
of rain brought down the temperature and refreshed the parched ground ; 
indeed, so thick and almost chill was the atmosphere, that I began to 
fear mildew and consequent debility. But soon again the sun reappeared, 
and the magnificent weather of the last eight or ten days has had mar- 
