76 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
October 5, 1895. 
HINTS FOR AMATEURS. 
Window Plants. 
Throughout the summer months plants in windows 
are very easily looked after, and very pretty effects 
may be obtained by even the veriest tyro in things 
horticultural, for there are a host of showy plants 
that only need a very little attention to do fairly 
well. But, as the autumn wears on and winter 
approaches, a different tale may be told. Anybody 
may have a window full of plants during the summer 
months, but it is by no means everybody that is 
able to keep them through the winter. This is just 
where, to use a somewhat vulgar term, the " trick " 
comes in. Some subjects, of course, it is impossible to 
keep, as for instance Coleuses. These brightly- 
leaved plants do fairly well during the warm summer 
days, but as the dewy damp nights creep on us, and 
the thermometer sinks lower and lower as the days 
wear away, the plants invariably commence to drop 
their leaves ; first those at the base of the stems turn 
shabby and fall off, and then those higher up until 
but a few young miserable-lookiDg leaves are left 
perched at the top of bare, ugly-looking stems. 
When they get thus far there is nothing for it but to 
throw them away. 
Begonias. —These have been very gay all the 
summer months, but now the lengthening stems and 
the decreasing size of the flowers that continue to 
struggle out as if the plants were loth to cease 
blooming, proclaim the fact that their race is well nigh 
run, for the present season at least. In this 
stage it is obvious that they are too shabby to stay 
indoors. Some careless people turn them out of 
doors as soon as their beauty is past, and straightway 
do their best to forget all about them, with the 
inevitable result that the poor plants languish for 
want of water, drop their stems and leaves pre¬ 
maturely, and the tubers are thus robbed of a good 
deal of the nutriment that should have been theirs. 
The result of this treatment is seen next year in the 
production of weak, spindly growths, and ragged, 
miserable flowers. If good plants are expected next 
year, a little more care than this must be bestowed 
upon them now. If a vacant cold frame is to be 
procured this is just the thing to place them in to 
ripen off. They may be stood as closely together 
as the pots will allow. The water supply may be 
curtailed considerably, but on no account must the 
drying off be too hasty. In the daytime the lights 
may be pulled off the frame entirely, and the plants 
exposed to the full blaze of the sun. In wet weather 
they should be tilted up at the back so as allow of 
the admission of plenty of air, and at the same 
time excluding the rain. Should the night prove 
trosty, sufficient covering must be given to exclude 
frost. 1 
Zonal Pelargoniums.— Whatever the season 
may be the popular Geranium, as people will still 
persist in calling it, is always welcome in the window 
of the cottage or the villa. There may be, and 
doubtless are, other plants that are more showy, but 
there are none that possess a more easily contented 
disposition. In addition to the easiness with which 
it may be grown, it does not waste the whole of its 
strength in producing a mass of flower which only 
lasts for a comparatively short space of time, but it 
continues to bloom for months at a stretch. Scarcely 
have the petals fallen from one truss of bloom than 
those of another commence to open. Plants which 
have been blooming all the summer will now have 
become somewhat leggy in habit, and rather unsightly 
on that account. The best way of rectifying this is 
to cut the plants back. Use a sharp knife, so as to 
make a clean cut, cutting down to within an inch or 
so of the commencement of the current season's 
growth. If desired the tops of the shoots which 
have been removed may be put in for cuttings, 
although it is rather late in the year for this kind of 
work. The cut-back plants may be consigned to a 
cold frame until room can be found for them in the 
greenhouse. Here a position on a shelf near the 
glass will suit them admirably. 
Winter-flowering Pelargoniums.—A batch of 
plants raised from cuttings struck in spring should 
always be grown, even if there is only room enough 
for a very limited numoer. The flower buds will 
have been kept pinched out of these plants in order 
to induce them to husband their strength for the 
production of flowers in the dull dark days of 
autumn and winter, when flowers of all kinds are at 
a premium. The stopping of gross or runaway 
shoots should also have been resorted to, in order to 
induce a bushy habit of growth. A few of the 
plants should now be allowed to flower, still keeping 
the flower buds pinched out of the others, so as not to 
have them in bloom all at once. As the pots have 
now become filled with roots, a little stimulant of 
some kind will be necessary. We have found 
Thomson’s Vine and Plant Manure to be as efficacious 
as anything, and besides, beiDg very safe to use, it 
may be applied by a comparatively unskilled person. 
Primula obconica.— For continuity of flowering 
and easiness of culture this beautiful species leaves 
the semi-double and single forms of P. sinensis, 
beautiful as they undoubtedly are, far behind. A 
packet of seed sown in the spring will produce 
abundance of plants, which may be had in flower 
at any time, as the seedlings commence throwing up 
their flower scapes at a very early stage, and con¬ 
tinue to produce them in great abundance right 
through the winter and early spring. It does well 
in a window with ordinary care, and is decidedly a 
good, all-round amateur’s plant. An occasional 
dose of " Thomson’s,” say about once a week, will 
add wonderfully to the size and depth of colouring 
of the flowers. If room cannot be found in the 
windows for all the plants at once they may be kept 
in a cold frame for a few weeks yet, although they 
must be taken out before the autumn gets too far 
advanced, as damp plays terrible havoc with them 
unless great care is taken to air them plentifully. 
Cyclamens. —It would be impossible to overlook 
these in making a list, however short, of winter¬ 
flowering plants suitable for windows. Most of the 
plants that we do see in windows are bought from 
the nurseryman, and are not home-grown, for from 
some reason or other the amateur fights shy of 
attempting to raise his own plants. Perhaps this is 
caused by the fact that in the earliest stages of their 
growth Cyclamens are rather difficult to deal with, 
for several packets of seed may be sown and only 
one or two plants result. This kind of thing is, to 
say the least of it, rather discouraging, and we do 
not wonder that some people prefer to buy their 
plants rather than to run the risks of failure in 
raising them from seed. 
Although it is a well-known fact that the finest 
flowers are always borne by plants of one year’s 
growth only, still some excellent results may be 
obtained by growing the plants on, after a brief 
period of rest when flowering is over, for the second 
and even the third year. After that, however, it 
certainly does not pay to trouble with them, as the 
flowers deteriorate greatly in size and substance. A 
sharp look-out must be kept upon the plants now, 
for fly is very partial to them, also thrip, and these 
little pests will soon spoil the beauty of the leaves, 
which upon well-grown plants are as ornamental in 
their own way as the flowers. 
Ferns in Baskets.— Continue to give these 
plenty of water, for the hot weather that we have 
been having of late, together with the circulation of 
air, which takes place all round such suspended 
baskets, soon dries them up, and Ferns, above all 
other plants, must not be allowed to become too 
thirsty. In watering, the baskets should be taken 
down and either dipped in a pailful of water or 
stood outside and well soaked by the use of the 
watering-caD. After it has been allowed to drip it 
may then be reinstated in its proper place.— Rex. 
-- 
HYDE PARK. 
The floral display alongside of Park Lane will com¬ 
pare very favourably with that of previous years 
while in several cases there is a distinct advance 
owing to the kind of plants employed or their 
particularly floriferous character, as in the case of 
Fuchsias, Heliotropes, and several others. Com¬ 
mencing at the end of the bedding near the Marble 
Arch there is a simple but pretty bed consisting of a 
pink Pelargonium regularly mixed with Love-lies- 
bleeding, light Pentstemons, Arundo Donax varie- 
gata and A. mauritanica on a ground work of 
Alternanthera magnifica. Further eastward a bed 
of striped Petunias has been wonderfully floriferous, 
the dry early part of summer suiting this class of 
plants admirably. Another pleasing mixture con¬ 
sists of Fuchsias, Statice Suworowi, and Dwarf 
Cornflower, sufficiently far apart to show the 
individual character of the plants. A simple and 
effective bed consists of the pale yellow-leaved 
Pelargonium Verona and Iresine Lindeni crossing 
each other in alternate and diagonal lines. A little 
farther on is a somewhat similar design worked out 
with Pelargonium Happy Thought and Iresine 
Lindeni, both striving which will be tallest, but well 
matched notwithstanding. Much dwarfer are Mrs. 
Pollock Pelargonium and Iresine, and Princess 
Alexandra and Iresine in two other beds. Double 
light-coloured Fuchsias and Carnations on a ground 
of Viola Beauty of Chipping Norton have made an 
admirable bed. The early yellow Chrysanthemum 
Precocite furnishes an agreeable change. A graceful 
and quiet bed is furnished by Dracaena congesta, 
Grevillea robusta and tuberous Begonias. A pleasing 
harmony is produced by Fuchsia Mrs. Marshall and 
Viola Wm. Neil. 
To the east of the Grosvenor Gate, the beds are 
much more numerous and arranged in a double row 
on one side of the walk and in a single row on the 
side next Park Lane. The display here is always 
the best and the beds are more exposed to light and 
but little overhung by trees to their great advantage. 
In our opinion the two finest and most charming 
beds consist of Fuchsia Madame Corneillson, 3 ft. to 
4 ft. high, mixed with Ten Weeks Stocks 1$ ft. to 
2 i ft- high- In both cases the plants have been most 
floriferous and the light flowers of the Fuchsias 
blend harmoniously with the numerous varieties of 
Stocks single and double. Somewhat novel and 
striking are two beds of blue Violas with three lines 
each of the broad leaved golden Privet at wide 
intervals. Scarlet Pelargoniums and Statice Su¬ 
worowi are also mixed with them and the whole is 
edged with Veronica Andersoni variegata. The 
bright golden foliage of the Privet might often be 
used for bedding purposes to advantage. A fragrant 
and attractive bed consists of Heliotrope President 
Garfield 4 ft. to 5 ft. high mixed with night-scented 
Tobacco 3 ft. high. Another bed that might well be 
copied in private establishments consists of Fuchsia 
Empress of Germany with double, violet flowers, on 
a setting of mixed Violas. Fuchsia Mrs. Marshall 
on a groundwork of Viola Beauty of Chipping 
Norton has also done well; two beds of 
Fuchsia scarcity and mixed Stocks have 
flowered fairly well ; but although the Fuchsias 
generally are a special feature of the bedding 
in Hyde Park, none of them, as far as we 
have noticed, have equalled the magnificent and 
charming effect of Fuchsia Madame Corneillson. 
Two beds of Palms, chiefly Kentias, mixed with 
Begonias apparently seedlings of B. semperflorens 
Vernon’s var. are also distinct in their way. Two 
very cheerful beds are made up of a mixture of 
Iceland Poppies, mixed Violas and Chlorophytum 
elatum variegatum. The lively effect was chiefly 
due to the orange-coloured Poppies against a back 
ground of dark foliage. Ivy-leaved Pelargoniums 
2 ft. high were full of flower buds when we saw 
them, but some heavy rains had spoiled the older 
expanded flowers. A pink and a deep rose variety 
were the best we noted. A bold, circular bed is that 
planted with Plumbago capensis and the grey 
foliaged Solanum marginatum, together with some 
Chrysanthemums and Gaillardias. A cheerful and 
cheap bed consists of a remarkable mixture of fancy 
Pansies mixed with hose-in-hose Canterbury Bells. 
Two large beds of scolloped outline are filled with 
Humea elegans and Begonia semperflorens, but 
although they have a bold appearance, the Humeas 
have flowered rather unequally for some reason or 
other. Four beds of Carnations including Queen of 
Bedders, Germania and Raby Castle have flowered 
splendidly, especially the latter which is always a 
reliable plant. 
At this point the double row of beds again gives 
place to a single row as the visitor progresses 
towards the Stanhope Gate. The beds are backed 
up here and there by Palms, Fuchsias, Heliotropes, 
Eucalyptus globulus, Plumbagos, Ivy-leaved Pelar¬ 
goniums, Palms aDd other subjects which are 
productive of a very tropical effect. Two large’ 
oblong beds of White Marguerites have been remark¬ 
ably floriferous. They were mixed with Dwarf 
Cornflowers, but the latter were entirely overpowered 
months ago. A mixture of Fuchsias, autumn-flower¬ 
ing Phloxes and Coral Trees have flowered 
splendidly, notwithstanding the seemingly strange 
mixture. Charming also is the bed of old plants of 
Pelargoniums, Celosia pyramidalis, Lilium speci- 
osum, bronze Chrysanthemums and Nierembergia 
gracilis. Farther on, the visitor comes to another 
bed in which a delightful mixture of Celosias 
