406 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
February 23, 1889. 
five leaflets, although so closely allied to the true 
Maples that both are often included in the same genus. 
The spaces between the principal nerves become greatly 
elongated, so that the primary leaf gets cut up into 
secondary ones or leaflets. This is of common occur¬ 
rence in Rubus, Potentilla, Eosa, Fraxinus, and many 
others, where two or more forms may occur on the 
same species. 
The Horse Chestnut (iEsculus Hippocastanum) shows 
the same disparity in its companion pairs of leaves. 
This is strikingly illustrated in old trees with a spread¬ 
ing head and drooping branches, where the leaves 
towards the base of any given shoot are larger, with 
greatly elongated footstalks, as if making a determined 
effort to get beyond those above them and reach the 
light. The individual leaves are digitate, with five to 
seven leaflets. It furnishes a third very distinct type 
or form, belonging to the same natural but variable 
family as the two previously-mentioned genera. The 
common Ash, Catalpa, Paulownia, and numerous others 
might be cited to illustrate the inequality of leaves 
brought about by the influence of light.— J. F. 
(To be continued.) 
-- 
The Amateurs’ Garden. 
--t-— 
Gladiolus Colvillei and its Varieties. 
The corms of this class of Gladioli should be planted 
at the first favourable opportunity, or should the soil 
out of doors not be in suitable condition, they may be 
put into a small pot for the present, and stood in some 
cool house or frame until a favourable opportunity 
occurs for getting them outside. If allowed to make 
growth in a dry state the corms get exhausted, greatly 
to their disadvantage. If so desired, they may be 
grown on and flowered in pots for the decoration of the 
greenhouse during summer. Being of much smaller 
stature than the ordinary tall-growing kinds, they are 
well adapted for pot culture. The typical form has 
warm, rosy red flowers, with conspicuous white blotches 
on the three lower segments, surrounded with deep 
purple lines. The pure white variety, G. C. albus, is 
also known as The Bride. Delicately pale-coloured 
varieties are Blushing Bride and Delicatissima, having 
a white blotch on the three lower segments, edged with 
rose. A rosy scarlet variety, named Prince Albert, is 
rendered additionally attractive by the great size of the 
white blotches on the three lower segments. That 
named Brilliant is of a brilliant scarlet, with white 
blotches, and is quite distinct from Fire King, which 
is fiery scarlet, blotched on the lower segments with 
rose. The garden varieties of this Gladiolus, itself a 
hybrid between G. cardinalis and G. tristis, are already 
very numerous, but the above is a good and represen¬ 
tative selection. 
Hollyhocks from Seed. 
Those who are not particular about named kinds of 
Hollyhocks can readily raise any number from seeds, 
which, if sown at the present time, will flower 
grandly towards autumn, provided they have been 
fairly dealt with during the growing season. Com¬ 
mence at once by sowing the seeds in a moderately 
warm greenhouse. Any tolerably light sandy loam, 
with a quantity of leaf-soil, will answer as a compost 
in which to raise seedlings. Sow sufficiently thin to 
avoid crowding of the seedlings till they have made a 
rough leaf or two, when they should be pricked off 
into boxes about 2 ins. apart each way, or potted off 
singly in 3-in. pots. They should then be returned to 
the quarters from which they were taken, and watered, 
keeping them there till they commence growth afresh, 
and appear tolerably well established. A cold frame 
would then prove a suitable place for them. Air 
should be given on all favourable occasions to prevent 
them becoming drawn and weakly. As the days 
lengthen, and the sun becomes warm, attend well to 
the young plants in the matter of watering, so as to 
get them well forward by planting time in May, or even 
earlier should the weather prove propitious. 
After being planted in the open, water liberally in 
dry weather to enable the young plants to strike root 
deeply, and they will grow so vigorously that the value 
of their flowers can be determined the first season. 
Seeds of a good strain will give rise not only to beau¬ 
tiful single and semi-double varieties, but doubles of 
superior merit will occasionally make their appearance. 
During the first year seedlings may only attain a 
height of 3 fc. or 4 ft., but afterwards, in well-tilled 
and richly manured land, they will grow 6 ft., 8 ft. 
and 10 ft., producing long spikes of richly-coloured 
flowers of great decorative value. 
Marshal Hi el Rose. 
Satisfactory results cannot be obtained from this, the 
most popular of all yellow Roses, when planted out of 
doors. In planting under glass, however, serious 
mistakes are made by putting the plant under con¬ 
ditions that are altogether unsuitable — either the 
temperature is too high, or there is too little ventilation 
and too diffuse a light. A common practice is to plant 
at the foot of the back wall of a lean-to house, and 
train the shoots up the wall, or even on wires. It is 
impossible under the circumstances that either satis¬ 
factory growth can be made or any flowers produced 
till the shoots reach the upper part of the wall and 
derive benefit from the light. Those contemplating 
the planting of this, or, indeed, any other climbing 
Rose, should make provision for the foliage and shoots 
being fully exposed to light. The house must also be 
ventilated top and bottom to keep the plants vigorous, 
and to prevent the attacks of insects, such as green-fly, 
which is always an inveterate enemy of the Rose, both 
out of doors and under glass. Should the Rose be 
trained under glass, the subjects beneath it will be 
more or less shaded, unless restrained within due 
bounds by preventing the shoots growing above a 
certain height. Little pruning in the ordinary sense 
of the term should be given. Merely thin out old and 
useless or weak wood from which no flowers can be 
expected, and train in the young shoots nearly at full 
length. 
Onions and the Grub. 
Many are now contemplating where to sow their Onions 
this year with the view of getting a crop without being 
destroyed by the Onion maggot. There can be little 
doubt that fresh soil is freest from this insect pest, 
but it cannot always be had. On the other hand, 
Onions have been very successfully grown on the same 
border for many years in succession. A common 
practice that meets with success in many gardens is to 
prepare the soil, and after treading it down in the 
usual way and levelling it, a quantity of soot is spread 
on the surface. Then draw shallow drills for the seed, 
and sow the latter, covering it up, not forgetting to 
rake fine. The soot has the effect of keeping the grubs 
at bay, while it acts as a stimulant to the crop. 
-- 
Hardening Miscellany. 
Paullinia thalictrifolia. 
Those who are acquainted with the herbaceous 
Thalietrums can form an idea of the foliage of this 
beautiful climber, the individual leaves of which are 
triangular and three times cut, the pinnae being also 
triangular in outline. They are dark green, and when 
making clean, healthy growth, the leaflets are distinctly 
marked with a silvery grey tint. When allowed space 
to develop, with plenty of root room, it constitutes a 
climber attaining a height of several feet, and in this 
condition forms a beautiful screen for the glass par¬ 
titions of a stove. It may also be grown as an orna- 
mental-foliaged plant in pots, as it can readily be 
pruned back to any required dimensions without 
injuring its beauty. Small pot specimens are grown in 
the nurseries of Messrs. J. Laing & Sons, Forest Hill. 
The Butter Nut. 
The costermongers’ barrows in the streets of London 
can now be seen loaded with Butter Nuts, and they 
appear to be objects of great curiosity to passers-by. 
They are the fruits of Caryocar nuciferum, the Souari 
or Butter Nuts, which are sold in the shops of this 
country, and greatly appreciated for their fine, bland, 
milky flavour. The Caryocars are tropical trees of 
immense size, growing to a great height, making it 
difficult to get at the fruit. Another tree known as the 
Butter Nut Tree is Juglans cinerea. It is one of six or 
seven North American species, in addition to the 
common European Walnut of this country, J. regia. 
The only other which ripens its fruits in this country 
appears to be the Black Walnut, J. nigra, the nuts 
being occasionally ripened in the southern counties, 
and sometimes imported to a small extent. Mr. A. J. 
Downing states that the Butter Nut is J. cathartica, 
but this is synonymous with J. cinerea. He says that 
“it is chiefly esteemed for its fruit, which abounds in 
oil, and is very rich and sweet. The foliage somewhat 
resembles that of the Black Walnut, though the leaflets 
are smaller and narrower. The form of the nut, how¬ 
ever, is strikingly different, being oblong, oval, and 
narrowed to a point at the extremity. Unlike the 
Walnut, the husk is covered with a sticky gum, and 
the surface of the nut is much rougher than any other 
of the Walnut genus.” The common Walnutis so well 
known that it is scarcely necessary to refer to it. Its 
fruit is imported to this country as well as to the 
United States, and as they are chiefly brought from 
Spain and Madeira, they are known as the Madeira 
Nut. A Lithuanian legend recounts that at the 
deluge, as men were being drowned, Perkun, the chief 
deity of the race, was eating nuts. He dropped the 
shells in the raging waters, and in them certain virtuous 
people escaped, and afterwards re-peopled the earth.— 
R Z>. 
Thunbergia laurifolia (T. Harrisi). 
Where the rafter of a stove or some similar place can 
be given this species, it forms a very beautiful free- 
flowering climber that seems to enliven the stove or 
warm conservatory during the winter and early spring 
months. If allowed to attain its fullest dimensions it 
would cover a very large area of the roof of a house, 
and flower in proportion ; but unlike many climbers 
that must attain a large size before they bloom freely, 
it can be grown in a comparatively small state in pots, 
as we noticed the other day in the nurseries of Messrs. 
J. Laing & Sons, Forest Hill. We have also seen it 
trained up the rafters of a low span-roofed stove, where 
it flowered finely in winter. After flowering, the 
superfluous wood can all be cut away, and having the 
summer before it to produce new growth, the plant 
will be in a condition to bring forth its large blue 
flowers the following winter. 
Croton Bragseanus. 
The narrow-leaved varieties of Croton, as well as 
Dracaena and others, are most popular at present for 
table decoration, and consequently we find them being 
largely cultivated to the exclusion of those broad- 
leaved, old-fashioned kinds which used to figure so 
much at plant exhibitions. The variety under notice 
has leaves from 1^ ft. to 2 ft. long, even when grown 
as small plants about the size used for table decoration. 
They are linear and irregularly blotched with crimson 
and yellow on a deep green ground. Their under-sides 
are purple. The variety is by no means new but 
will doubtless be more grown as its merits for the pur¬ 
pose above mentioned become recognised. It is con¬ 
spicuous amongst other kinds at The Grove, Teddington, 
Middlesex, where the stove is a fine structure recently 
built. 
Chameerops humilis. 
Considering its dwarf and compact habit and slow 
growth, this South European species is less frequently 
met with in private establishments than C. Fortunei or 
C. excelsa, now, however, classed as species of Trachy- 
carpus. C. humilis was first introduced to this country 
in 1731, but has since, to a great extent, been 
neglected, except in botanic gardens and a few others. 
There is a fine specimen at The Grove, Teddington, 
where it is grown in a large tub, and stood somewhere 
about the grounds during the summer months. Being 
so nearly hardy in our climate, it is simply stood in a 
cool conservatory, where very little fire heat is 
employed during winter. The stem is about 6 ft. high, 
and bears a well-furnished head of foliage. It flowers 
very freely, and its numerous flower branches are not 
uninteresting, even if not showy. 
Dracaena Hendersoni. 
Those who give preference to variety of colouring in 
table decorative plants would find a considerable amount 
of. colour in this kind. The leaves are lance-shaped, 
moderately broad, and assume an ascending direction. 
They are variously striped and banded with rose, red, 
and creamy white on a green ground. For the sake of 
comparison as to habit, it may be likened to D. 
terminalis, but has broader and less sharply-pointed 
leaves. We noted a thriving specimen in the new 
stove at The Grove, Teddington. 
The Two-leaved Squill. 
In the open border the earliest Squill to make its 
appearance is Scilla bifolia, which, as the name implies, 
produces two leaves from each bulb, seldom more. The 
typical form has deep blue flowers, not unlike those of 
Chionodoxa sardensis, only smaller, and five or six on a 
scape. Like its congener S. nutans, with which every 
one is familiar, it has sported into several distinct 
colour varieties, including purple, pink, and white ; and 
this notwithstanding the fact that white should be 
