March 30, 1889. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
481 
is given in the journal above mentioned, and it is said 
to be a reproduction of that mentioned in the great 
Chinese Encyclopa;dia, the name of which would be 
unintelligible to most readers. Although it has not yet 
bloomed in this country, a figure of a flowering plant 
is given in the catalogue of a well-known London firm. 
JI. de Maximowiez, a Russian botanist, in a memoir 
published in the Bulletin of the Imperial Society of 
Moscow, has given a brief history of the native country 
and the synonymy of this remarkable Labiate. In 
addition to the names above given, he says it is a native 
of Northern China, and at Pekin it is cultivated under 
the name of Kan-lu, for the sake of its fleshy edible 
root. In Japan it has been observed at Yeddo, where it 
is cultivated but rarely under the name of Daima Gik. 
It also occurs in the principality of Nambu, so that the 
tuberous Stachys may be considered a native both of 
Japan and China. 
->3K-- 
THE FERNERY. 
House fop. British and Half hardy Ferns. 
A pleasing and interesting display can be made with 
the British and half-hardy exotic Ferns in a house 
specially devoted to their culture. A most important 
point about Ferns of this class is that they can be 
grown without the aid of any artificial heat whatever. 
It is, however, advantageous to have some simple 
means of heating at command, so that in the event of 
severe weather, a little heat applied will enable the 
grower to keep a great many more kinds in an ever¬ 
green state than when no heat whatever is applied. 
It is also advantageous in that the temperature may be 
raised so as to dispel an excess of moisture whenever 
occasion may require it. Not only will the Ferns 
be benefited by such in the dullest periods of winter, 
but it will render the atmosphere more pleasant for 
those inspecting the Ferns. 
There are several important points to bear in rumd 
by those intending to construct a hardy Fern house. 
The site chosen will very much depend upon the 
convenience at command, but it should be borne in 
mind that more satisfactory results can always be 
obtained by selecting a northern or an eastern exposure 
for a cool fernery than a southern or western one, for 
the simple reason that the class under notice does not 
require direct sunlight as a rule, and in the majority of 
cases no sun need strike upon the plants at any time of 
the year. The north side of a dwelling-house or even 
a garden wall will suit admirably. If close to a 
dwelling-house or other high structure it will materially 
lessen the necessity foi fire-heat, and the Ferns in such 
a place will be convenient and of easy access to the 
owner at any time. The house may be a lean-to, or of 
any other simple design, or tastefully built according 
to the fancy of the possessor. In such a position com¬ 
paratively little ventilation will be required ; but a 
means for it, both top and bottom, should be provided, 
so as to ventilate and sweeten the atmosphere whenever 
necessary. No shading will ever be required on a 
house in this position. The glass of the end facing the 
east may receive a thin coating of whitening in which 
a small quantity of size is mixed, so as to fix it. After 
it has been neatly painted on, the whole should be 
lightly daubed over with a painter’s brush, so as to 
make the glass appear stained or covered with hoar 
frost. This will remove the objectionable appearance 
of white-washed glass. 
The interior of the house may be variously arranged, 
according to size and the taste of the owner. Small 
lean-to houses should have a path down the centre, 
being in the most convenient position for visitors where 
the roof is low. A slate staging should be made along 
■ the back on a level with the shoulders, so that the 
plants may be conveniently inspected, and at the same 
time be brought near the glass for the sake of light. 
A lower bench will be sufficient along the front, but a 
pleasing variety may be secured by leaving this for the 
construction of rockeries and other conveniences for 
planting suitable Ferns directly in the soil. 
A larger house may have a central bed for the con¬ 
struction of rockwork, and the two sides may be 
devoted to pot plants, so that the occupants may be 
re-arranged from time to time, according to the season. 
Deciduous ones, such as the Lady Ferns, could, of 
course, be put in the back-ground when their fronds 
decay. The shelves should be covered with clean 
sifted coal-ashes, fine sifted gravel, or shelly gravel, so 
as to be clean and retain the moisture about the plants. 
A neat and tasteful arrangement of rockwork containing 
pockets for Ferns should occupy the central area, or 
the whole may be laid out as a bed for the cultivation 
of tall and beautiful kinds. 
FLOWERS OF SPRING. 
Chionodoxa Lucilise. 
"With me this plant is now at its best, and is growing 
in open borders where it was planted some four years 
ago. So much has been written concerning it in the 
horticultural papers from time to time, that it is 
difficult now to say anything original concerning it. 
My principal object in noting it now is to advise all 
lovers of early spring flowers who do not already 
possess it, to purchase a few bulbs and cultivate them 
in the open borders, for I feel sure they will consider 
themselves amply rewarded when it furnishes them 
with a few of its beautiful blue, star-shaped blooms. 
It associates well with Snowdrops, or rather, I should 
say, will be at its best in the same bed before the 
Snowdrops are over. July and August, after the bulbs 
have completed their growth, is the best time to plant, 
and it will be found to do very well in a light well- 
drained soil.— J. H. 
Anemone blanda. 
The finest of the early spring-flowering Anemones is 
A. blanda. The flowers are larger than those of A. 
apennina, which also forms a conspicuous feature in 
the early spring garden. A. blanda is a native of Asia 
Minor and South Europe, and when introduced proves 
rather variable in the depth of the colouring of the 
flowers, which may be described as deep sky-blue, 
fading to a much paler shade—the extreme being 
known as A. blanda p illida. Both kinds are admirably 
adapted for rockwork, and on account of their early- 
flowering character should be planted in a somewhat 
sheltered place where they will not be driven about by 
storms of wind and rain. The different forms com¬ 
menced flowering some weeks ago in the grounds of 
Messrs. Barr & Son, Lower Tooting. 
Azalea amoena Golvillei. 
The size of the flowers in this variety has been greatly 
improved, while the petaloid calyx so characteristic of 
the typical form has been preserved, and, as well as 
the corolla, has undergone enlargement. The leaves 
are also somewhat larger, and apparently of a 
lighter green, judging from a large pyramidal speci¬ 
men which we noted the other day in the nursery of 
Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, Chelsea. Like the Car¬ 
michael strain of the same species, the variety under 
notice will prove ’useful as an early-flowering easily- 
forced kind. 
Iris Rosenbachiana. 
In general appearance this is comparable to I. persica 
with regard to stature and the form of the foliage. It 
may be described as stemless, seeing that the foliage 
springs up as it were from the’soil. At blooming time 
the leaves are only a few inches long, deep green, flat, and 
investing the flower-stalk, which is itself about 3 ins. 
or 4 ins. in length, carrying a solitary bloom. The 
latter is of large size relatively to the bulk of the plant, 
and extremely pretty when grown as a pot subject in a 
frame or cool greenhouse, where it would enjoy plenty 
of light and air. The standards are spathulate, and 
pale blue or bluish lilac, as are the petaloid stigmas, 
but the falls are very much larger, and more ornamental 
in every way. Below the bend they are lilac or pale 
blue, and above that of a rich dark purple. Individuals, 
however, vary considerably in the depth of colour. 
We noted flowering specimens in the nursery of Messrs. 
Barr & Son, Lower Tooting. 
Soilla bifolia. 
In the earlier stages of its growth there is considerable 
resemblance between this Squill and Chionodoxa 
Lucilise, and we frequently find the two kinds mixed. 
The period of flowering is also nearly the same ; but 
notwithstanding this there can be no difficulty what¬ 
ever in distinguishing them when in flower. The two¬ 
leaved Squill merits a more extended cultivation than 
it enjoys, on account of its hardiness and early 
flowering. The flowers are bright blue, and are borne 
with their face upwards, not suspended as in Scilla 
sibirica, which is admired for its bright blue flowers of 
an altogether different shade of colour, reminding one 
of an intense azure-blue. As in the English Blue Bell 
(Scilla nutans) so we have in S. bifolia a flesh-coloured 
or rose, and a pure white variety, all three being 
admirably adapted for growing in mixed clumps in the 
wild garden, as well as on the rockery. They are the 
earliest Squills that flower in the open border. The 
blue or typical kind is extensively grown by Messrs. 
Birr & Son, in their grounds at Lower Tooting. 
CATALOGUE PLAGIARISMS. 
I am interested only in a remote degree in the matter 
of debate raised in Messrs. A. Burpee & Co.’s note of last 
week, as honest people may well look on with indiffer¬ 
ence, whilst some other people quarrel. But with 
respect to these same plagiarised illustrations, I am 
tempted to ask whether the blocks from which they 
are printed are not sold by American houses freely to 
our seedsmen, and in that way become personal 
property over which they have the fullest rights of 
usage ? Take the Potato illustration previously referred 
to. Who, unless he be an ass of the first water, believes 
that any such crops ever were lifted from any kind as 
the illustration shows ? The picture is a gross exaggera¬ 
tion, and how can any firm honourably complain if 
what is such a gross ex iggeration is appropriated by 
others who would strive to influence their customers 
with such misconceptions ? 
Supposing it were asked of the originator of these 
illustrations, “ On your oath do these pictures truthfully 
represent the various products named?” T he obvious reply 
must be, “ They represent our ideal of the products.” 
Therefore who can claim any monopoly in ideal pro¬ 
ducts ? But when American firms have parted with 
the blocks of these pictures, can they still claim to have 
authority over their future use ? That would be an 
absurdity. By purchase they become the property of 
the new owner, and he can do as he likes with them. 
That they deceive no one I believe ; rather people 
laugh over their exaggerated absurdities. 
A really truthful illustration of any garden product 
is always to be welcomed, and if our American friends 
will be careful themselves in the production of such 
illustrations, our seed lists at home will be all tho 
better for it.— D. [Blocks undoubtedly are sold by 
American houses to our seedsmen, and when disposed 
of without any stipulation as to how they shall be used 
the purchasers unquestionably have the fullest right of 
usage, but that right does not make it honest to publish 
an illustration as the portrait of Mr. Jones that was 
first issued and sold as a counterfeit presentment of 
Mr. Brown. As between English and American seeds¬ 
men such acts are no doubt legal, if not in accord¬ 
ance with the laws of morality ; but as between 
tradesmen in this country they are not now legal. 
The new Fraudulent Marks Act provides a short and 
sharp remedy for wrong-doing in this and other 
directions, and all who issue trade catalogues would do 
well to make themselves acquainted with its provisions. 
—Ed.] 
-- 
PROTECTING WALL FRUIT 
TREES. 
I thank my old friend Mr. Nutting for reminding 
me of an accidental omission in my remarks on pro¬ 
tecting wall fruit trees, but in the necessarily condensed 
form which we are obliged to take in offering 
contributions to your periodical, it w T as impossible to 
deal very fully with the subject. I quite agree with 
him in all he says about garden netting as a protective 
agent. My object in writing was to point out a few 
efficient, economical, and easily procurable methods of 
protection. Mr. Nutting is evidently, from the tenor 
of his remark-), in favour of glass copings for walls, and 
here I at once join issue with him. Several years ago 
they were very strongly advocated in garden periodicals, 
and adopted in many gardens, but I do not think they 
are so generally popular now. They may be useful for 
hanging protecting material upon, and for shedding the 
rain off the trees when the fruit is ripe in very showery 
weather, but at other times they do more harm than good. 
Wall trees, as well as trees in open spaces, derive 
great benefit from showers of rain and night dews, and 
they cannot get the full benefit of these valuable 
stimulating agents where glass copings are used. The 
walls themselves will, to a great extent, keep off rain 
and dews, but how much more so under such a system ! 
Besides, if we take an economic view of this matter, 
glass copings can only be put up at considerable ex¬ 
pense, and for the money laid out we cannot expect 
anything like an adequate return. The same money 
would be more profitably expended in putting up a 
Peach and Nectarine house, where quality and quantity 
would secure corresponding returns. Also consider the 
vast amount of labour such a system entails ; the trees 
must be constantly syringed and watered throughout a 
good part of the year, or they would suffer from drought 
and soon be ruined and destroyed by insects. Peaches 
and Nectarines, as every gardener knows, are very 
subject to the attacks of red-spider, and the syringe 
must be constantly kept going through the summer 
months to keep these pests under. 
