May 0.] 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
83 
beds or as auxiliaries for filling up vacancies as things 
go oil' in the autumn. 
Alyssum (Sweet), always a useful plant to have a stock 
of at hand. 
Aster (China)—To he sown about the middle of May in 
the reserve garden; to be transplanted there once or 
twice, or treated like celery plants in all respects, and 
not to be planted in the flower-garden till the plants 
show their colour. 
Clarkias and Gollinsias, always gay and useful, but 
will not remove after they are half-grown. 
Convolvulus minor. —A most lovely summer flower, of 
which there are now many varieties. It makes a splendid 
bed for three months; will not transplant unless very 
young. Sow it where it is to flower, and place the tops 
of pea-stakes all over the bed as the plants advance, 
and they will soon he covered. 
Convolvulus major. —Of this there arc many shades of 
colours, from clear white to dark purple, and all of them 
are gay and useful for summer climbers. 
Dianthus, or the Pink and Sweet William tribe, and 
the Indian Pink. —There are many nice little plants in 
this tribe for rock work, and for gay patches here and 
there, where room can he found for them. 
Erysimum perofskianum. —This is a gay, tall, yellow 
annual, which will bear to he trained down ; and will 
flower for three mouths; and also a good one to sow in 
the autumn. 
Eucharidium grandiflorum. —This is one of our gayest 
little annuals, with purplish pink flowers; and a little 
bed of it is one of the gayest of the season, but it only 
blooms for five or six weeks. 
Larkspurs .—These, again, are very rich in dwarf and 
tall plants of various colours ; a bed or border of mixed 
dwarf larkspurs is extremely gay, and the tall ones not 
less so. The real blue branching larkspur is one of the 
most difficult to get and to keep true, without the purple 
tinge ; and I would pull up all the shades of it to save 
seeds from the dark blue variety. 
Malope grandiflora is a tall purple with mallow-like 
flowers, and will hold on for full three months. 
Nemophila .—All of them are gay six-week annuals, 
which may be had from the end of April till the frost 
comes, by sowing them in the autumn, three times in 
the spring, and again in the first week in J uly. 
Nasturtiums. —The common nasturiums are very gay 
for edgings to beds when well managed, and will trans¬ 
plant until they are of a large size. They should ho 
trained as a broad band, and their large leaves pulled off 
as often as they obscure the blossoms. 
Salpiglossis. —Of this there are many shades, and they 
last three months or more in bloom, and are well worth 
a place in the flower-borders. 
Stocks. —All the varieties of the ten-week stocks, if 
sown now, will come in useful in the autumn for filling 
up beds and borders, 
Sultans. —The sweet sultans, particularly the yellow 
and the purple ones, make a good addition and variety 
to the flower-beds; and they may be sown till after mid¬ 
summer for late autumn blooming. 
Poppies, Persicaria, and Sunflowers, are also good old 
things for shrubbery borders ; and so are Zinnias, and 
Viscaria occulata , and Scabious, all of which will be in 
time for autumn bloom, if sown before the 20th of May. 
D. Beaton. 
GREENHOUSE AND WINDOW 
GARDENING. 
Balconies. — Since I adverted to this subject last 
week, I have had an opportunity of seeing a great many 
of these adjuncts in urban, suburbau, and rural situa¬ 
tions. In many of these, though the houses were coated 
with cement, and coloured, or painted, to resemble stone- 
colour, the railings and boarding of the balconies were 
of a bright green; the very diversity of colour attracting 
attention, and bringing up, not unfrequently, ideas of 
afterthoughtism and insecurity combined, and more 
especially the latter feeling, when no suitable balustrad- 
ings,ornamental or otherwise, were seen; it being neces¬ 
sary for the complacent comfort of the observer, that 
strength should not merely exist, but that the elements 
of tliat strength should be perceptible—a. fact which has 
led to many a necessary ornamental appendage in archi¬ 
tecture that otherwise might have been unnecessary. 
But with all this incongruity, it was pleasing to observe 
that a better taste was finding its way, even as respects 
the prevalent colour of the balconies. In hundreds of 
yards of suburban balconies, where, a few years ago, 
green flamed in all its glory, the colour has been ex¬ 
changed for dull stone, or sober bronze. In many of 
these balconies, too, vases and baskets bad been ex¬ 
changed for the long narrow boxes. But here, in some 
cases, the principle of harmony had been carried too 
far; for the walls of the house being painted, the pretty 
stone or composition vases bad been painted too, which 
reduced them to the same level in point of appearance 
as would have been manifested by vases of burnt clay, 
of wood, or of iron, if equally painted; all of which 
would have looked better it liberally daubed with white 
sand when the paint was wot, which would at once re¬ 
move the impressions of oily paint, which to our mind 
is rather incongruous with the growth of plants, and 
elicit the appearance and the associations of vessels of 
sandstone : not that we advocate, in general, anything 
approaching duplicity or deceit, even in appearance, but 
in the present case we cannot see the harm in hinting 
to our balc&ny friends how they may for the expense of 
a few shillings develop as pure a taste, as the titled lady 
may with propriety exhibit at the expense of as many 
pounds, by possessing the real Simon-pure article, and 
not a cheap make-believe vessel. As there is something 
in a name, so there is much in appearances, so far as 
the awakenings of feelings of pleasure are concerned ; 
and, therefore, while upon the open balcony—even so 
far as the ideas of strength and solidity come before our 
notice—we would contend for having vessels intended 
for plants consisting really or apparently of stone ; so 
upon the sill of the window outside, and especially inside, 
would we recommend, instead of the red pot, pots and 
vases of all beautiful shapes and colours, hard-burned, 
and glazed, or even the prettiest china; and for the 
encouragement of those who think that plants would 
not thrive in such vessels, I would state that some of the 
finest and cleanest plants in a window I over beheld 
were grown in such vessels, the colours of which har¬ 
monised and contrasted with each other, as well as with 
the plants flowering so beautifully in them. Nothing 
but a prejudice in favour of soft, staring, red pots, could 
have reconciled ladies, who shew such refined taste in 
the choosing of the furniture, carpeting, painting, and 
drapery of their rooms, to place such incongruous 
vessels upon their tables or window-sills, when others, 
beautiful and diversified in form, and harmonious in 
colour, could have been used ; and it too costly to come 
in contact with our rough gardening hands, so as to grow 
the plants in them, there could be no objection to set¬ 
ting the plants, with their common pots attached, inside 
of them when in their flowering state; and then a slight 
covering of green moss would not only perfect the illu¬ 
sion as to the plant growing in the beautiful vase, but 
would also, by its checking evaporation from the soil, j 
render the necessity of watering a matter of less frequent j 
occurrence. 
But to return to our balconies—in. London, and more 
particularly its suburbs, thousands of pretty baskets of 
wire-work, of all conceivable shapes and forms are to bo j 
