178 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
February 28, 1895. 
plants of a similar nature. In the near future the merits of 
hybrid Cannas will not be overlooked, for those merits are of a 
high order from two points of view—viz., summer adornment 
and winter ease. The blessing is to some extent qualified by the 
glass room required for starting them in the spring, the season 
when congestion reaches an acute stage. With some things this 
cannot be avoided, with others it may be lessened by kindling 
the dormant spark with the least possible amount of fire heat ; 
so will they better withstand after unkind snaps, whilst the 
hardening process, always a troublesome one, will be rendered 
easier. 
Whilst giving the Zonal Pelargonium its due, it has, as a bedding 
plant, been glorified beyond its merits. For some eight months out 
of the twelve it requires glass protection, and its effective period of 
display in the beds has again to be discounted. It has undoubtedly 
had its day, and a long day, too. True, few of our tender bedders 
can boast of a longer duration of outdoor life, but some of them 
can now be raised annually from spring-sown seeds, and may be relied 
upon to retain the parental character with some increase of vigour. 
We have to thank our seedsmen for the pure strains of various 
plants making this possible, and though these seedlings, such as 
Lobelias, by their vigour do not conform to those prim habits we 
look for in carpet bedding, this fault is rather a merit when they 
are otherwise employed. 
These are but palliatives. The cure must be looked for amongst 
'hardy plants, and though at present but dimly revealed, the wide 
range here presented cannot but contain some kinds which if taken 
in hand by the hybridist or improved by selection, should meet 
iihe demands of formal bedding. Recent history demonstrates how 
obscure types have been raised to the ideal by the horticulturist, 
and noting what has, and is being done, there is not any reason 
for supposing that purely hardy plants cannot be raised to the level 
of beauty, form, habit, or colour adapted for the purpose. Demand 
creates supply, but I venture to think that if this order is reversed, 
and that if such plants are forthcoming, the supply will create 
demand, for their merits cannot be ignored. 
Too long have the inmates proper of our houses been jostled 
and crowded through the dark days of winter ; too heavy has been 
■the strain on all concerned ; yet out of evil has come good, for 
owners of the structures can now see the incubus borne on the 
back of the gardener. The doom of the fashion is sealed, yet it 
dies slowly. Sudden death would create a void. Hardy plants as 
substitutes must in addition to the merit of hardiness contain all 
the points which are looked for in the tender kinds, and though 
having all these, may still have to overcome some prejudice, dispel 
some glamour yet lingering over their more delicate cousins. Yes, 
all nowadays are apt to count the cost, whether it be expense literal 
or expense of force, and the time is at hand when common sense 
will not despise common things whose lineaments are endowed with 
lines of beauty and utility. 
Such changes obtain only by degrees. The present is our 
immediate concern, and we know how at the present, and at the 
present season, the man who is troubled to raise, protect, and pro¬ 
pagate the thousands of tender plants for an after brief display, 
has his trouble doubled by the hundred things strictly utilitarian 
he may not neglect. Vegetables have to be forwarded to circum¬ 
vent a long winter and an all too short summer. Fruits in season 
or out of season are looked for, nor must they be found wanting ; 
and in how few gardens is not this felt to that degree, in which a 
gardener grudges the very space taken up by the walks in the 
houses. 
In private gardens these walks in the houses often tempt the 
covetous eye by the large amount of space they absorb. To meet 
the pinch some at least of this space may be utilised by temporary 
shelves erected overhead. Shelves are not, it must be admitted, 
things of beauty, but that consideration may and must to some 
extent be shelved at the winter season. This phase has nought to 
do with the shelves proper, which presumably are fixtures. 
Brackets or pendants for carrying suspended shelves, can be 
devised and adapted to the roof. These, if permanently fixed, 
form no eyesore when the boards are removed, and there are but 
few of our houses, even of the ornamental type, into which these 
temporary shelves could not be pressed at the pinch and do good 
duty. These boards if planed, painted, and numbered when fitted, 
can be stored when not required. 
A well furnished Pine, such as P. austriaca, if growing in the 
vicinity of the garden, with its branches sweeping to the ground, 
forms an excellent snuggery for Agapanthus, Lilies, or such things 
requiring some protection. During a hard spell some litter will 
ensure safety. Small matters as these are, they are little helps 
worth having. That congestion which cannot be avoided amongst 
the rightful occupants of the houses, must be met by scrupulous 
attention to cleanliness in all details, with the frequent turning and 
shifting it involves. This attention conduces to the maintenance 
of health during the time that accommodation has to be found for 
these temporary visitors, of which we would much prefer their 
room to their company.—E. K., Dublin. 
PLANTS FOR THE BACK WALLS OF VINERIES. 
A GREAT variety of plants have at various times been recom¬ 
mended for this purpose; some of them which have been much 
belauded bj^ a few cultivators have proved conspicuous failures in 
the hands of others. This, I think, occurs through an insufficient 
explanation as to the real conditions under which they were grown 
successfully. To illustrate this point let me take the case of Figs, 
which a few years ago were in many gardens planted against vinery 
walls with the firm conviction they would prove satisfactory, but 
unfortunately far more failures than successes resulted from the 
practice. The explanation of this is, I opine, simple enough ; for 
by the time the principal crop of Figs should commence ripening 
the foliage of the Vines overhead affords too dense a shade for 
Figs to ripen properly, and for the same reason only unripened 
wood is available for the next season’s crop. Notwithstanding 
these well-known facts some cultivators have succeeded in pro¬ 
ducing good crops in positions above described, but I think the 
key to the whole matter will generally be found in the fact that 
the Vines have not been allowed to extend the whole length ot the 
rafter, or that the vineries have been hip-roofed, with the back part 
entirely free from Vine foliage. Such conditions as these of course 
entirely alter the whole matter. It is simply “ robbing Peter to 
pay Paul.” 
The plants which I intend to recommend for that purpose are 
those which will thrive well in houses where Vines are trained over 
the whole surface of the roof. Those two fine introductions of 
recent years—Asparagus plumosus and A. tenuissimus—are sterling 
plants for covering walls in the positions above indicated. The 
extra heat given to the Vines during the growing period is 
productive of free growth in the Asparaguses, and the conditions 
under which Vines succeed while finishing their crops, and during 
the season of rest, insure properly hardened Asparagus sprays. No 
difficulty ought to be experienced in securing good growths 
annually if strong plants are secured to start with, and liberal 
treatment given when they are well established. They will then 
revel in abundant supplies of liquid manure or chemical fertilisers. 
Frequently these plants are unsatisfactory through being starved. 
It is desirable to have properly prepared borders, so that the roots 
may be confined within a given space, and thus be under perfect 
control. 
it is often impossible to allow much width of border, especially 
in old vineries where the stone slabs forming the pathway are 
fixed within a short distance of the back wall. Fortunately only 
a limited amount of space is really necessary ; any width ranging 
from 9 to 15 inches, with a depth of 12 or 18 inches, does very 
well. If the front of this space is not already confined by a wall 
or boundary of some kind a rough brick wall should be built. 
Six inches of broken clinkers, crocks, bricks, or similar material 
ought to be employed for drainage, and be covered with moss, rough 
peat, or loam fibre. Two parts loam, one part leaf soil and one of 
horse droppings (prepared as for a Mushroom bed), with a little 
sand and lime rubble, when mixed together form a capital compost 
in which to set the plants. A good time for planting is when the 
houses are closed for starting the Vines. 
Two other excellent plants for the same purpose are Smilax 
and Lygodium scandens. The first named requires but little root 
