1S77. ] 
GARDEN GOSSIP. 
215 
of the hole, slightly pushing it inside; the entrance must be nearly stopped with the wool. 
This done, in half an hour’s time the nests may bo safely dug out and smashed up. Some 
nests may require a second dose, but that will bo but seldom, if well done at first. The 
number of queens to be found in a nest in October is surprising; a few of them remain at 
the bottom of the nests, and others take to buildings or any warm sheltered place, and remain 
in a state of lethargy until warm spring weather, when they issue from their retreat, and 
seek to find out a suitable place in which to establish their nest. 
- ®HE Mignonette^ wliich is an universal favourite, because of tlie rich 
fragrance of its flowers, may be had in bloom in the greenhouse from October 
until the following April, by sowing in .July for the early flowering, and in Sep¬ 
tember for blooming during the winter. The best way is to sow the seed thinly in six-inch 
pots, and thin-out to a single plant, as Mignonette cannot be transplanted successfully. If 
pyramids are requii'od, the main stem should be trained up, and stopped when about a foot 
high, which will cause it to produce side-shoots, and form nice bushy plants. 
-®HE beautiful Calochortus venustus and its allies may be grown without 
difficulty. In a sheltered peat-border, in which Ixias thrive, they may be 
planted in August and September, according to the experience of Mr. S. Hibberd, 
and left to themselves, for they are as hardy as Ixias certainly, and probably some degrees 
hardier. They can also be cultivated in pots, planting them in sandy peat, or in a rich and 
light loamy compost, and giving them cool greenhouse or frame culture all the winter. They 
come into flower at a time when choice plants are scarce, and are at their best in the latter 
days of August and early days of September. As soon as their leaves begin to die down, 
they should be repotted, to ensure a good bloom the following season. They make seed freely, 
and the seed should be sown in boxes as soon as ripe, and treated the same as seeds of the 
Lily—that is to say, kept in a brick pit, somewhat shaded, and always moist. 
-^'HE Planting of Paihvay Embankments lias often been recommended 
as a source of profit. Mr. Moggridge suggests that it should be adopted as one 
means of staying the destruction of hedges and other property, by the ignition of 
the dead wood and dry rubbish, now often suffered to accumulate. His plan is to cultivate 
the ground, now waste, between the railway and the fence with crops which must vary with 
the soil and climate. Potatos, turnips, carrots, onions, and cabbages w^ould succeed on the 
better soils, while the poorer might be planted with various kinds of herbs, such as lavender, 
for which there is considerable demand. The railway companies may say, “ We have enough 
to do without becoming gardeners.’^ True, but the people in their employ, and the peasants 
of the neighbourhood, would gladly pay a small rent for the land, the conditions being that 
the ground should be kept clean, and that the crops be taken off while green. 
- ^HE New White Hydrangea^ “ Thomas Hoggf is a plant that will be 
certain to make it way as a decorative plant. Messrs. Veitcli’s specimens have 
shown that it is not only a good white, but forms a fine free head of blossom. 
Though hard worked for propagating purposes, it has produced good, massive heads of 
flowers, which, though opening with a greenish tinge, have become bleached to a milk-white 
while still fresh. It is a plant suited for general cultivation, and will, no doubt, soon find its 
way into every garden, where it will form a fitting companion for the fine masses of blue and 
pink Hydrangeas which are already so useful and so conspicuous. 
- ^HE stately Amaryllid, Crinuni ornatum, has proved itself to bo hardy in 
the open border at Qlasnevin. It is very precocious in ‘first producing its floral 
umbels, but will continue 'to send up other flower-stems at intervals during the 
season, so long as favourable weather permits. 
- ®HE negotiation with the Treasury for the purchase of 27 acres of 
ground to be added to the Edinburgh Botanic Garden for the formation of an 
arboretum has at last been brought to a successful issue. By means of the 
energetic action of tlio promoters and the harmonious co-operation of the Lord Provost and 
Town Council and the Treasury, a feature of great interest and economic valuo will be added 
