552 
THE GARDENING WOULD. 
April 28, 1888. 
FLORICULTURE. 
Dahlia Planting. 
Is your Dahlia ground prepared ? This is an appro¬ 
priate question to put at this time of the year. It may 
be a superfluous one to ask those who grow Dahlias for 
exhibition, because it is well known that they make 
a practice of trenching their ground and getting it in 
readiness before Christmas. At the same time, there 
may be some fanciers of the Dahlia who have not done 
so, and do not see the importance of it. I have known 
the ground in which Dahlias were to be grown neither 
dug nor trenched until planting time. Not a few, in 
planting out their Dahlias, think that a hole opened 
with a trowel or spade on a hard border is sufficient; 
but it is not, if full justice is to be done to the plants. 
The piece of ground intended for the Dahlias should be 
trenched in the autumn, and allowed to remain un¬ 
touched until planting time, simply throwing it up 
rough, so that frost and wind may operate upon it; no 
manure or anything need be trenched in. At planting 
time, which should not be earlier than June, the 
ground should be marked out for each plant, three or 
four spits of earth being thrown out, and the same 
quantity of rotten manure dug in and mixed with the 
soil. Planting should be done with the hand, and 
care taken that besides a centre stake which is intended 
to support the main stem of-the plant, three short 
stakes be also inserted in the form of a triangle, about 
1 ft. from the plants, as by tying the matting to the 
centre stake, thence to the plant, and fastening it to the 
shorter stakes, the plant is made secure from winds. 
May is the month when young green plants of 
Dahlias are received from the nurseries. As soon as 
received they should be shifted into larger pots, and 
grown on into size, so as to have the plants as sturdy 
and healthy as possible. By doing this, much time is 
saved, for it will have been observed that the seasons have 
been late in recent years, and planting out has had to 
be deferred until the second and third weeks in June ; 
if small green plants be put out so late, they have 
but a short time comparatively in which to become 
established and grow into size, and they cannot pro¬ 
duce blooms until very late in the season. Let, 
therefore, orders for plants be given as soon as possible, 
so that they may be received early in May, and then 
potted up as directed. Some growers prefer to use 
pot-roots—that is, small roots of Dahlias kept in a dry 
state through the winter. Soft-eyed, or varieties apt 
to come thin in the blossoms, produce finer flowers 
from large roots divided, or pot-roots. On the other 
hand, very full varieties, or such as are liable to pro¬ 
duce green centres, bring the most perfect flowers on 
plants grown from cuttings. — R. D. 
Auriculas. 
Though April is termed the mid-season of the Auricula 
bloom it is decidedly late this year, and where there 
is an abundance of flower it has been brought on by 
means of fire-heat, or where the house or frame occupies 
a sunny and sheltered position, and covered up well at 
night. In one of his pleasant papers the Rev. F. D. 
Horner has said:—“Buds and blossoms must suffer 
no check of any kind in April—no exposure to cold 
draughts, no nipping by frost, no shutting up under 
hot sun. The temperatures under which the flowers 
expand most kindly are 50° by night and 55° to 60° by 
day. With sun-heat, 65° is enough for a maximum, 
and more is trying. For a minimum, 45° is the lowest 
desirable mark at this time, day and night. Cold 
below 40° and heat above 70° are both likely to cause 
harm to the flowers in much the same way, by causing 
them to set— i.e., remain at the state in which the 
extremes caught them.” I confess that on not a few 
occasions during the past fortnight my Auricula house, 
which is on a north aspect, has, I fear, fallen below 
40° by day, and considerably lower by night, while the 
time consumed in the expansion of the pips is some¬ 
thing remarkable. I have a plant of Prince of Greens 
that has been nearly a month in expanding its pips, 
and I do not think there will be a fully-opened one 
for another week. I can show this variety the third 
week in April only when I get a truss bare in the 
autumn, but which does not rise up till early spring. 
When that old favourite, Lancashire Hero, does this, 
the flowers almost invariably become green edged, and 
then it is seen in fine form. 
I have many seedlings open, especially among seifs 
and alpines. It is difficult to get something really 
first-rate among the show section, as the Rev. F. D. 
Horner and others have done so much in this way of 
late years. Among the alpines I have several of a very 
promising character indeed, especially of the shaded 
types, and here also it is difficult to get anything really 
first rate, Mr. Turner having taken such a gigantic 
lead. My model exhibition Auricula is Unique, a 
beautiful shaded variety with a golden centre ; it is of 
good size, very circular, of the best form, and very 
striking in character. It is a good grower, early 
to bloom, very free ; and anyone making a selection of 
alpine varieties, should take care to have Unique 
among them, although it is somewhat scarce at 
present.— R. D. 
Messrs. Garters’ Strain ef Cinerarias. 
A new house is in course of erection for the purpose of 
growing the Cinerarias at Messrs. J. Carter & Co.’s 
nursery, Forest Hill; but at present about 500 plants 
occupy the old structure, which is altogether unfitted 
to show off the plants to advantage, owing to the 
height of the staging, which, in order to bring the 
plants near the light, carries them too far above the 
eye. They are, however, dwarfer and better flowered 
than we have previously seen them ; and all the inferior 
forms having been weeded out, so that the rest might 
he grown on for seed, the strain is very rich in all the 
leading colours. Various shades of violet and purple 
blended in different ways, magenta-crimson, clear 
indigo, red, rosy red, carmine, crimson, blue, and white 
seifs are telling colours. Great stress is laid by some 
cultivators upon these rich dark colours ; but the 
bicoloured varieties are certainly both conspicuous and 
attractive. Snowflake must not, however, be over¬ 
looked, with its pure white rays and purple or violet 
disks. Emperor Frederick keeps its own, with its 
semi-quilled, crimson-maroon, and pink-clawed rays. 
The seifs above named have their representatives 
amongst the bicoloured forms, with the addition of a 
white zone intervening between the richly-coloured 
circumference and the disk, which is nearly always of 
the orthodox dark tint. The flowers measured from 
2J ins. to more than 3 ins. across the ray, some of the 
ray-florets being close upon 1 in. in width, so that they 
overlap one another considerably. 
Hyacinths at Forest Hill. 
It would appear late in the season to speak of Hyacinths, 
but a trial of some 400 varieties is being made by 
Messrs. J. Carter & Co. at Forest Hill, and as the plants 
having all been grown in a cold frame until quite 
recently, they are now in perfection. They have been 
obtained from several different growers, and, notwith¬ 
standing the immense variety that now exists in 
Hyacinthus orientalis, the colours are true to name, 
a fact which indicates pretty clearly the great care that 
must be exercised by those who grow them extensively 
for sale. 
Amongst blue varieties of various tints, the following 
were the cream of those we noted, namely, Grand 
Maitre, Leonidas, Lord Derby, and Preastly, all of 
which were notable for the size of their spikes or flowers, 
or both. Equally grand are Amy (carmine-red), 
Gertrude (rosy pink), Gigantea (white suffused with 
pale pink), Norma (pink with a darker midrib), Queen 
of Hyacinths (intensely bright rose-red), and Sultan’s 
Favourite (blush, with a pink midrib). The yellow 
kinds, although exhibiting less variety, yet glory in 
wonderfully large spikes and flowers for varieties of 
this colour. Solfaterre may be described as orange- 
amber with a dash of pink. A beautiful and well- 
known variety is Ida, of a clear soft yellow; while L’Or 
d’Australie is the deepest and finest yellow of all. 
White varieties chiefly differ in the size of the spike, 
the flowers, their numbers, and density of arrangement, 
all of which characteristics are easily detected when 
brought together, so that the eye can criticise them 
side by side. Albertine and La Grandesse are two of 
tne purest white varieties extant, and have large 
massive spikes, especially the latter. Blanchland, 
though less pure, is nevertheless fine. Anna Maria 
may be described as a double white with a purple 
centre, but the rest of the flower is tinted with the 
faintest blush. Noble par Merite has very large, fully 
double, pure white blooms ; but the best and most 
massive of the double varieties which we noted was 
undoubtedly La Tour d’Auvergne. 
Pinks. 
I am looking forward with much interest to the bloom¬ 
ing of some^seedling laced Finks Mr. E. S. Dodwell 
kindly sent me in the autumn. They were potted up 
as soon as received, wintered in a cold frame, and a few 
weeks ago planted out in the open in well-prepared soil. 
The recent soft April rains, followed by warm sunshine, 
is causing them to grow merrily, and I am hopeful to 
see them flower in their best form. I have also some 
seedlings of Mrs. Sinkins, sent by Mr. J. Lakin, 
which he thinks are decided improvements upon the 
old style. Then I have a dozen strong plants of my 
old favourite, Lord Lyon, one of the very best—I 
think I may say the very best purple Pink cultivated, 
and a good grower also. I think if anyone were to 
take this variety in hand, and produce seedlings from 
it, some very fine and distinct forms might be obtained. 
It is the custom to plant out Pinks in the autumn. 
It is necessary, in order that the fragrant flowers 
should be large, full and perfectly laced, that the 
plants be well established in the soil during the winter. 
During the spring the surface of the beds is kept well 
stirred, so that the soil may be aerated. The Pink is 
a plant that is subject to canker, and nothing is more 
certain to produce this than to allow the surface of the 
soil to become encrusted with a green growth, which 
it will do if not stirred. No reasonable man can expect 
fine flowers from unhealthy plants. It is in the month 
of April that top-dressing is applied to the beds. The 
method usually employed is to remove 1 in. of the 
surface soil around the plants, and in its place 
substitute a somewhat large quantity of partially- 
decayed cow-dung, covering this up, for the sake of 
appearance, with a thin layer of fresh soil. This top¬ 
dressing is very beneficial to the plants as they are 
hastening forward to flower. 
Many of the plants will show a larger number of 
blooming shoots than they are able to bring to 
maturity, and it is necessary, in order to secure fine 
flowers, to remove a few of them. These shoots can be 
made into cuttings if the sorts are scarce from which 
they are taken, and they will root best if placed on a 
gentle bottom heat in pots filled with fine, light, sandy 
soil. All may not strike, but some of them will, and 
if only one in a dozen makes a plant the labour is not 
altogether lost. Should the weather be drying, water 
must be given if required, and an occasional application 
of liquid manure is found highly beneficial. — R. D. 
-- 
NOTES ON GARDENIAS. 
The Gardenia is indisputably one of the most beautiful 
and serviceable stove plants that we have, and for 
bouquets, button-holes and decorative purposes its 
fragrant white flowers are of unsurpassed usefulness. 
Although the Gardenia is popularly known as the Cape 
Jasmine, the three species most generally grown are 
natives of China. These are G. florida Fortunei, 
G. f. intermedia and G. radicans major, all three of 
which are excellent varieties, and well worthy the 
attention of every cultivator. They are easy to 
cultivate, and luxuriate in an abundance of heat and 
moisture. As with all other plants, perfect drainage 
is absolutely essential to their successful culture. The 
method of planting them out in a bed in the stove is a 
good one, and can be recommended to all who wish for 
an abundance of excellent blooms. Still, this system 
possesses its disadvantages too, because they all come 
on at one time, and a succession cannot be so well kept 
up as when they are grown in pots. 
When grown in pots they can be removed to the 
intermediate house or to a pit, provided the temperature 
does not fall below 45° (Gardenias will submit to as low 
a temperature as 45°, but it would be risky to subject 
them to any lower than that), and introduced to the 
heat as required for a succession. During the month 
of June is considered the best time to do any necessary 
re-potting, for which purpose the compost should 
consist of rich loam and peat in equal parts, and a 
quantity of sand to render it porous. Immediately 
the plants show signs of activity they should be 
syringed overhead daily ; but this practice must be 
discontinued as the flower buds expand, or the flowers 
will be stained and useless. Supplies of liquid manure 
may be advantageously given from the time the flower 
buds appear until the blooms are cut. As the sun 
gains increased power in spring, recourse must, there¬ 
fore, be had to shading. If the plants are making 
straggling growths, they should be cut back with a 
view to encourage a more sturdy habit, as it is fiom 
strong bushy plants that the best crop of blooms is 
gathered. 
That confounded pest, mealy-bug, is a source of 
great annoyance in their culture, and the Gardenia is 
very liable to its attack. Fortunately for the removal 
of this we have a few efficacious insecticides at com¬ 
mand. We all know that petroleum is a powerful 
insecticide, but I dislike its method of application, 
and will, therefore, recommend the use of methylated 
spirit or Bridgford’s Antiseptic Liquid to the in- 
