202 
THE FLORIST AND POMOLOGIST. 
a pair of beds, each composed of three lobes. The one had a centre of Perilla 
nankinensis, surrounded with Golden Chain Geraniums, Koniga variegata, and 
Lobelia speciosa. The twin bed had Amaranthus melancholicus ruber, sur¬ 
rounded with Bijou Variegated Geranium, Baron Hugel, and Cerastium tomen- 
tosum. There was a vigour and a vividness about the foliage of the Amaran¬ 
thus that specially attracted notice. Mr. Plester, the gardener, informed me 
that he found it succeeded best in a rich soil. This cuts athwart the theory 
that has been broached—that to secure the bright hue of the foliage of the 
Amaranthus it should be kept in a state of semi-starvation, and to my mind 
triumphantly refuted it. Cerastium tomentosum and C. Biebersteini were 
largely used for edging; so also was Veronica variegata. It was pegged-dowm, 
and the dry weather seemed to bring out the variegation very distinctly. The 
Cerastiums were very dwarf and healthy. Whenever the edges of the beds 
are trimmed by the shears, the Cerastiums are subjected to the same process, 
and in consequence they are always dwarf, dense, and symmetrical. Several 
of the leading kinds of Verbenas were here bedded out. The best were 
Annihilator, bright crimson, with conspicuous white eye, very strong, and 
retaining its colour in the hottest weather ; Foxhunter, brilliant scarlet, dwarf 
close habit, and very free; Etonia, purple, with white eye, very effective ; 
Lord Craven, vivid crimson, a first-class bedding variety; and Parfait Madeleine, 
mottled purple, an old variety, but of sterling worth as a bedding variety in 
hot seasons. Among bedding Geraniums Punch was remarkably fine ; so also 
was Moret Martin, Rosea Superba, Beaton’s Nosegay, and Frederick Desbois, 
bright carmine centre, edged with white, very free-flowering and showy. 
I saw here Madame Ferguson Petunia used as a bedder, and very effective 
it was; the plants were crowded with blossoms from head to foot. A single 
dark purple, called Beauty, was one of the best of that shade of colour I have 
ever seen. The double variety, Elise Matthieu, was also bedded out, but many 
of the flowers were destitute of the clear white blotches that make it so 
attractive. Dotted about the shrubbery were patches of the bright yellow- 
flowered CEnothera prostrata; it was full of blossoms, and it remains in bloom 
for a considerable period. GE. macrocarpa greeted me frequently, holding out 
its large yellow flowers towards the brilliant sun. It is propagated here in the 
spring by simply plucking off the side shoots in the month of April, and 
pricking them into the open borders, where they quickly form vigorous plants. 
Mr. Plester informed me that he scarcely had a failure; while under the old 
system of endeavouring to strike them in heat during the summer, failure was 
the invariable result. 
It was clearly demonstrated here that Lobelia Paxtoniana will not come so 
true from seed as its twin sister, L. speciosa. The majority of the seedlings 
raised from it were miserable rubbish, fit only for the refuse-heap. 
Crossing the avenue to the Rose garden, I observed a large plant of the 
curious Venetian Sumach, called also, I believe, the Wig Tree of South America. 
It was laden with tufts of thread-like flowers, which made it an object of con¬ 
siderable interest. 
The Roses were resting after their summer display, preparing for their 
period of bloom during the autumn. Some Hollyhocks were exhibiting their 
first flowers, but only a few were yet in bloom. Mr. Plester is a constant 
exhibitor of both of these flowers at our metropolitan as well at some of the 
provincial exhibitions; fruit, also, he occasionally shows with great credit, 
and not without corresponding success. 
• In the kitchen garden and forcing-houses the presence of a master hand 
was everywhere visible. All that skill and care could do was working out the 
result aimed at in ever-widening circles of development. At the autumn 
