580 
THE GARPPNING WORLD 
April 23, 1892. 
judge of the return to the grower ! But how they 
are to be got to London is the problem. Recently, 
by way of experiment, a case was sent from Sydney 
to Fiji and back. The journey occupied about a 
month, and considing the season and climate the test 
must be looked upon as a pretty severe one. The 
result is considered highly satisfactory, but judging 
from the appearance of the fruit alone I have grave 
doubts on this point. The variety was apparently 
the Black Hamburgh—not the most suitable one I 
should say to stand such a journey. 
We have yet to make a discovery before Peaches 
of high quality can be exported. At present they 
are scarcely to be obtained at all in Sydney. We 
propagate fine sorts, but the demand for the trees is 
restricted, as we are told "it is too difficult to market 
such fruit, and it will not pay for extra care in 
packing." One of the very best free-stone peaches 
here is Hale’s Early. A soft cling stone—Governor 
Garland—recently received from America appears 
to be first-rate, and of their kind Crawford’s Early 
and Shanghai are unsurpassed. We have been 
overwhelmed with novelties, but so far nothing very 
startling has been discovered among them, and some 
have been found quite unsuitable.—C. B ., Homelash, 
N.S.W., March 5th. 
--*•- 
THE WALLFLOWER. 
The fields of Wallflower which are so largely grown 
for cutting for the London markets are fast getting 
into bloom, and the rich fragrance the flowers 
dispense fill the air with sweetness. But somehow or 
the other odoriferous Wallflowers and chilling east 
winds and snow storms do not go well together, 
and so much of the beauty of the pleasant spring¬ 
time is lost. A local poetess, writing a few days 
since, says :— 
" Winter is dead, and o’er his bed 
The jewelled seraphs of springtime tread.’’ 
think winter is far from dead. The footsteps of 
the "jewelled seraphs ” can be imprinted in snow; 
and their jewels seem to partake of the character of 
sleet. I think we must admit winter is very much 
alive, the fancies of the poet notwithstanding. 
The Wallflower is a native of Southern Europe, 
and I am not quite certain if we can claim it as an 
indigenous plant. But it has made itself quite at 
home among us, growing on old walls, in quarries, 
and on sea cliffs. In its wild state the flowers are 
always single and of a bright yellow colour, but 
cultivation has done wonders with it, and in the 
present day we are in possession of varieties of 
various shades, pale yellow to gold, and bright 
chestnut to deep maroon. The habit pf the Wall¬ 
flower is almost perfect—dwarf, bushy, compact, 
very free blooming ; but unhappily, hardy as the 
plant undoubtedly is, it is often wrecked during a 
severe winter. Fields of Wallflowers show great 
gaps of dead plants, thus demonstrating the trying 
character of the winter, which at the late Eastertide 
seems as if it will have no ending. 
One authority tells us the Wallflower was intro¬ 
duced from Spain under the name of the Wall-Stock- 
Gillofer, which afterwards became Wall Gilliflower, 
and finally Wallflower ; the facility with which it 
grows upon old walls accounts for the latter name. 
An amount of romance attaches to the flower, and 
tradition gives a poetic origin to it. It tells that, in 
by-gone days, a castle stood near the River Tweed, 
in which a fair maiden was kept a prisoner, having 
plighted her troth and given her heart's affection to 
the young heir of a hostile clan ; but blood having 
been shed between the chiefs on either side, the 
deadly hatred cherished in these lawless days for¬ 
bade all thoughts of the union. The gallant tried 
various stratagems to get possession of his betrothed, 
all of which failed, until at last he gained admission 
to the castle disguised in the garb of a wandering 
troubador, and as such he sang before his lady love, 
and finally arranged, with the aid of a serving 
woman, that the maiden should effect her escape, 
while he should await her with a noble courser and 
armed men. Herrick tells us the conclusion of the 
story in the following lines :— 
"Up she got upon a wall, 
Attempted down to slide withal, 
But the silken twist untied, 
So sh,e fell and, bruised, she died. 
Love in pity of the deed, 
And her loving luckless speed, 
Twin’d her to this plant we call 
Now the flower of the wall." 
From the fact that Wallflowers grew upon old 
walls, and were seen on the casements and battle¬ 
ments of ancient castles, and among the ruins of 
abbeys, the minstrels and troubadours were accus¬ 
tomed to wear a bouquet of these flowers as the 
emblem of an affection which is proof against time 
and misfortune. 
I find in 1817 we had in cultivation in this country 
the single yellow and the single dark, and the double 
varieties of each. It would be interesting to know 
the origin of the latter, for they are very distinct in 
character and quite different in type from the Ger¬ 
man double varieties. I can quite regard the latter 
as essentially distinct from the former. I have never 
knowm the former to seed ; the latter are obtained 
by means of seed. I think there is no doubt the 
German varieties originated as sports from the single 
Wallflowers. They are like the single German 
Wallflowers in growth, but as their business appears 
to be to throw up one gigantic flower spike when 
well grown, they rarely make much in the way of 
side growths. The old double varieties, which are 
frequently found in cottage gardens, take on a rather 
tall and somewhat free branching growth, which is 
altogether unlike the double German varieties. I 
think they came originally from some part of South¬ 
ern Europe. Can any of your Scotch readers inform 
me how many varieties of the old double Wall¬ 
flower there are ? Of the single Wallflowers, there 
is a fine selection of the Blood-red, which is known 
under various names, and is largely grown in West 
Middlesex and elsewhere for market purposes. 
Perfect in habit, colour, and shape of flower, it 
appears to give all that can be desired. Cloth of 
Gold, Cranford Beauty, Golden King, Golden Tom 
Thumb (a name which is somewhat of a misnomer 
because of its somewhat tall growth), and Bedfont 
Giant Yellow, are all very fine types of the single 
yellow, and well worthy a place in the garden. 
Belvoir Castle Yellow, which is the Golden Tom 
Thumb of some, and Ware’s Dwarf Golden repre¬ 
sents a dwarf, compact, early-flowering variety, so 
pure in colour that the buds are yellow and the 
flower stalks pale green. It has a marked individu¬ 
ality of its own, and can be readily detected. The 
seeds are small, and pale in colour, unlike those of 
the larger single yellows, which are generally of the 
same colour as the seeds of the dark variety. Prim¬ 
rose Dame is a pale sulphur-coloured variety of the 
Belvoir Castle, and Faerie Queene is something of 
the same colour, both selections, to all appearance, 
from the Belvoir Castle. 
The Single German Wallflowers are remarkable 
for their diversity of colours, and among them may 
be found purple tints. I have sometimes tried to 
perpetuate some of these, but without success. All 
the Single German Wallflowers appear to be of a 
lanky growth, and apparently wanting in con¬ 
stitution. 
Wallflowers should be sown earlier than they 
usually are, as it is important they have time to 
mature their growth and so produce good heads of 
bloom. May is not too early to sow; certainly 
not later than June. A seed bed can be 
formed in any open, airy spot ; it is not necessary 
the ground be rich. To make effective bedding 
plants it is a good plan to transplant to nursery beds 
as soon as large enough, and encourage the plants to 
form surface roots, and then at the end of the 
summer they move well to beds and borders without 
receiving a check. The aim of the cultivator should 
be to develop a short, stubby, free-branching, 
shrub-like growth ; and then fine heads of bloom 
may be looked for. An over-rich soil induces a 
sappy and soft growth ; at the same time it should 
have sufficient heart in it to help the plants to carry 
a good head of flower. 
--4-- 
IRIS SINDARENSIS. 
The falls of this Iris are of a light shade of blue 
with a median yellow line, while the erect standards 
are narrow and pale blue. The petaloid stigmas are 
darker. The light green, arching and channelled 
leaves are arranged in two bold ranks, and are of thac 
type which shows that the plant belongs to the 
Xiphion section of Iris, having for its companions I. 
persica, I. tuberosa, and I. Rosenbacheana, to the last 
of which it has probably the closest affinity. Like 
the rest of this class it requires to be well ripened off 
after having made good foliage, and to be kept rather 
dry while it is resting. It flowered recently in the 
nursery of Mr. T. S. Ware, Hale Farm Nurseries, 
Tottenham. 
THE HERBACEOUS BORDER. 
Choice Plants in Flower. 
Fritillaria latifolia.— The radical leaves of this 
plant are the broadest, and they are best developed 
on bulbs that are not sufficiently strong to flower. 
The stem leaves are linear-lanceolate, glaucous, and 
often grooved, especially the larger ones. The 
flowers are produced singly on stems about a foot in 
height, and are large, bell-shaped, drooping, of a 
brownish purple externally, marbled with pale 
greenish yellow, but of a deep brownish red 
internally and tessellated with a brighter yellow. 
Owing to its dwarf habit it should be planted in the 
front line of the herbaceous border in loose, friable 
soil if possible, and left alone so long as the bulbs 
are not crowded. 
Iris caucasica.— This was originallyfintroducedin 
1821 but for some cause or other has never become 
common. The rootstock is tuberous as in the case 
of I persica, and may be grown in any good garden 
soil that is well drained. The leaves are subulate, 
channeled, sharply arched or curved and of a bright 
green. The flower stems rise about a foot in height 
and bear a number of flowers from spathes near the 
top of the stem. They are yellow with two brown 
blotches on the recurved lamina. 
Anemone Pulsatilla.— The Pasque flower is a 
native of the English chalk downs, and when grown 
in gardens should be planted in open sunny positions 
in firm but well-drained soil. These conditions 
would often be found on the rockery, but in the 
absence of such a position it may be grown on an 
ordinary border and let alone so that it may get well 
established. The finely divided leaves form a com¬ 
pact tuft scarcely rising above the ground, while the 
one-flowered stems are not much higher. The 
sepals are purple and brightest internally, because 
the outer surface is densely covered with silky hairs 
which no doubt constitute a sort of protection to 
them during the cold weather of early spring. 
Corydalis solida.— Although not an aboriginal 
native of this country, yet this plant has become 
naturalised on banks and cultivated ground, often 
not far from gardens or human habitations, thus 
showing that it finds conditions suitable to its well 
being. The glaucous leaves are two or three times 
divided and form a low, compact bush in early 
spring when flower stems are produced in great 
abundance just above the foliage. The flowers are 
purple and showy, but not appreciated at their 
value, because the plant is old fashioned and easily 
grown. It may be cultivated with success either in 
the open border or on the rockery. 
Puschkinia scilloides. —In this we have another 
old garden plant often seen in gardens under the 
name of P. libanotica because it comes from Mount 
Lebanon as well as other parts of Syria, the 
mountain plants of which generally prove hardy in 
this country. In fact so hardy is it that the bulbs 
may be planted any where in well drained garden 
soil, or upon the rockery if so desired. The flowers 
are borne on racemes like those of a Scilla and are 
white with a sky blue line down the middle of each 
segment. They may be described as pretty, 
although not showy as they lack striking colour. 
Plants, however, that are able to take care of them¬ 
selves when planted in the open ground should re¬ 
ceive encouragement at the hands of the cultivator. 
Anemone Hepatica. —An old fashioned flower, 
yet ever new, as it blooms afresh each succeeding 
spring, this never fails to captivate the lover of hardy 
plants when seen in its best condition. Good-sized 
clumps have the finest effect, especially if accom¬ 
panied by good foliage, and the latter should be ex¬ 
pected, seeing that it is perfectly evergreen when the 
necessary conditions are present. The plant is 
perfectly hardy, but evidently prefers a cool rather 
moist climate far removed from the smoke of towns, 
and to be left alone when once it is established. In 
town gardens it is too frequently lifted, and divided 
for the sake of numbers rather than size. The 
flowers vary from blue to rose, pink, and pure white, 
both single and double. 
Sisyrhynchium grandiflorum .—Even in the far 
north this beautiful Iridaceous plant opens its 
flowers in April, if the winter and spring has not 
been all the more cold and protracted. Like 
Crocuses it seems to last longest in cool weather, and 
soon shrivels up in bright sunshine. The leaves are 
