August 2G, 1S86. 1 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
179 
root should be planted in deeply trenched beds, 6 t> 9 inches deep, in 
late autumn, and slightly protected during winter and early spring. The 
Bame remarks apply to Bomarea. 
Anchusa italica should be treated as a biennial. Sow the seed in 
April, either in pots or open ground. They flower the following year, 
but after flowering once get weak and die out. 
Anemone japonica should be planted in a moderately light soil;’or 
if the soil be heavy the beds should be well raised or deeply trenched. 
Best time for planting, early spring. The plants should never be left too 
long on the same spot—that is, not longer than four years. 
Aster (perennial), Delphiniums (perennial), Chelone barbata, Chrysan¬ 
themum maximum Monarda didyma, Lychnis, Rudbeckia, Pbysostegia, 
Heleniums. Helianthus, and similar plants, should be planted in early 
spring ; well-manured soil, rather open, with plenty of room for plants 
to develope. They should be well watered during the summer, and if 
the soil be light and sandy well mulched. 
Summer-flowering Chrysanthemums should be treated as the pre¬ 
ceding, but planted in May or June. Although perennial and quite 
hardy, they do much better if repotted every year. 
Dianthus, being biennial, should be reproduced every year by seed, 
cuttings, or layers ; good sorts by cuttings or layers only, seed never 
coming true. Seed should be sown in early spring, and the planting out 
in middle of summer in comparatively light soil; open situation. 
Single Dahlias, not being quite hardy, should not be planted out before 
the end of May or beginning of June ; well manured soil, plenty of room, 
and abundance of water during summer; if possible, in a position not 
exposed to the morning sun. The tubers should be either lifted in 
autumn, kept dry, and away from frost; or, if left in the ground, pro¬ 
tected from frost Seed never comes true ; good sorts should always be 
reproduced by cuttings. 
Geranium tubero‘um, Tigridia, Hyacinthus candicans, are quite hardy 
in light soils, but suffer from the cold damp in heavy soils ; should be 
planted in April, fully exposed to the sun, and well watered during 
summer. They can either be lifted in autumn and kept like Dahlias, or 
protected. 
Potentillas, Phloxes, and Pyrethrums are quite hardy ; should be 
planted in early spring in welt trenched ground, open, exposed, well 
watered during summer, reproduced by cuttings or division. 
Pentstemons ; such sorts as glaber, barbata, Scouleri, are perfectly 
hardy in any soil or situation, but the so-called florists’ flowers varieties 
are not so. These should be propagated by cuttings in autumn, and kept 
in a cold frame or greenhouse for spring planting. 
Senecio pulcher is one of our prettiest autumn-flowering plants. Good 
healthy plants should be planted in May in well trenched beds exposed to 
the east. Mulch the ground in June, and give the plants plenty of water 
till they show flower. During the winter put a box or bellglass over the 
plants to protect them from damp, which rots the centre. Continual re¬ 
production by division of the roots is recommended, and the great beauty 
of the plants repays for all trouble. 
Tritomas prefer a slightly sheltered border exposed to south and west. 
Best time for planting early spring. 
Lobelia cardinalis should be planted in autumn and thoroughly well 
watered during summer, rather dry during winter. 
Iris germanica, pumila, siberica, virginica, &c., require open positions 
with plenty of water during summer, heavy soil is preferable. The bulbous 
Iri such as Xiphoides, Xiphium persica, &c., prefer a light sandy soil, 
dry and sheltered. Other sorts, such as iberica, susiana, &c., should be 
planted near a very dry south wall, where they will get but little rain 
during the summer. Iris Robinsoniana and fimbriata are not hardy, and 
should be grown in greenhouse. 
In conclusion I am deeply conscious of the imperfections of this paper, 
which I trust you will kindly excuse. The burden and care of a parish 
of 20,000 souls—except, as (I am glad to say) it includes a visit to the 
gardens of my working men frienls, who seek my advice in horticulture 
together with the 101 other complaints to which mortal man is heir to— 
is not conducive to literary attainments and neat composition. But if I 
have helped you in any way, if I have sent you on your way rejoicing, 
determined to master this department of horticulture as vigorously and as 
efficiently as you have done other branches ; if I have done anything to 
give impetus to the turning tide of popular taste in favour of these 
hardy herbaceous flowers, I am amply repaid and fully satisfied. 
A VISIT TO SUFFOLK. 
Gardening, as a vocation, has an absorbing interest to those who 
practise it, and to such an extent does one’s attachment thereto prevail, 
that whenever a much-needed holiday is taken, ostensibly for rest, one is 
almost sure to either take a gardening tour, or if otherwise, there is an 
irresistible temptation to visit gardens within measurable distance of our 
place of sojourn. I suppose there is something more fascinating in gar¬ 
dening than in any other profession, for most other people who take a 
holiday make up their minds to dismiss all thoughts of their daily occu¬ 
pations, and enjoy new pleasures, discuss different themes, and replenish 
health and mind through a “ total change.” Not so with gardeners ; they 
cannot, no matter where they go, enjoy the repose they need quite as 
much as other mortals. Onder these circumstances then, gardeners, in 
return for making such sacrifices, hope to gain benefits in some shape or 
other, and these are frequently of great value to them, because in the 
course of their travels they are sure to learn some useful lesson, or Bee 
something worthy of note. This, in a great measure, is my reason for 
communicating the following gardening notes to the Journal although in 
reality my notes, if any, should have dealt with farming, for that was 
the object that induced me to pay a visit to the places hereafter 
described. 
I had a cordial invitation from a valued friend, Mr. Edward Luckhurst 
a name well known to readers of this Journal, the other week to run down 
to Nowton, near Bury St. Edmunds, to spend a few days with him, and 
have the pleasure of driving over a portion of a few thousand aciei of 
land under his management, and to see the excellent system of farnrng 
carried out under his supervision. That invitation was accepted, and 
although I did see a great deal of our friend’s highly successful farming, 
and enjoyed the pleasant rural drives and intercourse on the subject, I, in 
common with my brethren of the craft, could not resist the temptation to 
leave gardening matters altogether in abeyance. I question very much if 
anyone could, surrounded as my genial host’s home is with such a mag¬ 
nificent paradise of the most beautiful trees it is possible to meet with. 
There fortune, or accident, whichever term, you like to use, has certainly 
placed the right man in the right place, for few have such a love and 
knowledge of arboriculture as Mr. Luckhurst has, as readers of back 
volumes of the Journal can testify from a peru-al of his exhaustive and 
valuable contributions on the subject. As agent of a large estate he has 
other and more important duties to fulfil than those of a purely arbori- 
cultural character; but, nevertheless, his past experience and souud 
practical knowledge of the latter subject has already proved advantageous 
to the welfare of the fine collection of trees at Nowton Couit. I shall not 
enter into minute details respecting the gardening f-atures of Nowton 
Court (with which Mr. Luckhurst has nothing to do), but I cannot alto¬ 
gether pass by the many features of interest on the estate without giving 
a few brief outlines of its principal features. 
The owner of the Nowton estate, J. Porteous Oakes, Esq., has from 
boyhood been greatly devoted to arboriculture, and during a life¬ 
time of over sixty years has enriched his home estate with a most valuable 
collection of trees. In the pleasure grounds, park, and adjacent fields 
and plantations are to be seen probably some of the finest examples of 
Conifers that are to be met with in England. The Redwool (Sequoia 
sempervirens), Sequoia gigantea, Cedrus Deodara, atlantica, and Libani, 
the Swiss Stone Pine (Pinus cembra), P. insignia, excelsa, and others, 
Abies Douglassi, nobilis, Nordmanniana, Pinsapo and Smithiana, Ta.xus, 
Cupressus, Thuia, Libocedrus, and Juniperus of sorts have grown in a 
remaikably short space of time into gigantic specimens as faultless in 
contour and as healthy as it is possible to conceive. Mr. Oakes very 
sensibly plants and nurtures his trees wiih a view not only to their 
adding beauty to his estate, but also in the future yielding a profitable 
supply of timber. The Redwood, for instance, is planted largely both 
singly in the park, grounds, and plantations, as well as the Cedar of 
Lebanon. Every care and attention is paid to the judicious thinning and 
training of these trees by keeping their stems free of side grow'hs. The 
Redwood is a telling tree for grouping in plantations, the soft, spongy, 
reddish bark making an effective and cheerful contrast with the sombre 
green of the surrounding foliage. I have never met with such large 
handsome pyramidal examples of the common Yew as are to be met with 
in the plantations here. Mr. Oakes takes great pride in these, and the 
way in which he manages to get such finely shaped specimens is by the 
periodical use of the pruning knife and saw. The side growths are cut 
back to within a foot or 18 inches of the main stem, and although the 
trees look unsightly for a time, the plan certainly answers admirably, 
and is well worthy of imitation. The common Walnut is planted in 
great quantity in the parks and fields, in fact there are groves of them, 
fine, large, handsome trees, planted mostly by their present owner. Other 
valuable timber trees, such as Oaks, Chestnuts, Maple, Ash, Lime, and 
Beech, are also growing in large numbers. The planting has been carried 
out with excellent effect and taste, the various trees forming beautiful 
vistas, and the blending and harmony of contrast of the foliage being 
all that could be desired. The Purple Beech thrives uncommonly well, 
the colour developing better than I have ever previously seen it. Within 
the last few years Mr. Oakes has planted some miles of new plantations, 
forming extensive belts round the home estate with choice trees, the 
hedges of the former being planted with the little known Myrobolan 
Plum, Prunus cerasifera. Until the manngement of the estate came into 
Mr. Luckhurst’s hands the Plum hedges used to be kept trimmed, but now 
they are left to grow with a view to their producing fruit, as no doubt 
they will do freely another season. There is a fine collection of the 
shrubby Spiraeas, Lilacs, and flowering shrubs, with the ex option of 
Rhododendrons, which do not thrive well on the Nowton soil, growing 
freely in the plantations. No matter which way you look or go on this 
estate, you see abundance of beautiful trees, forming a series of land¬ 
scapes of sylvan beauty, and turning into a paradise an estate which 
devoid of these trees would not be half so valuable and interesting as it 
is. Mr. Oakes has lived to see these giant trees develope, many of them 
from seedlings of his own raising from small specimens, and well mig it 
he be proud of them. If other proprietors would manifest the same 
amount of interest and zeal as this gentleman, they would render their 
estates not only more beautiful but profitable. Digressing for a 
moment, with the Editor’s permission, from arboricultural topics to those of 
farming on the Nowton estate, I may state tor the benefit of my farm¬ 
ing readers, that by the judicious and intelligent use of artificial manures, 
draining, and thorough cultivation of practically exhausted land, excellent 
crops of b dh cereals and roots are obtained. Mr. Luckhurst’s know¬ 
ledge of vegetable physiology and agricultural chemistry has enable 1 him 
to provide at a minimum of cost exactly the kind c f food suited to the 
particular crops. He prefers to procure the raw materials, so to speak, 
and then mix them in the proportions he deems mo3t suitable, and not to 
