July 19, 1890. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
731 
ARDENING gflSCELLANY. 
—«*«— 
A Williams Memorial. 
"Whilst all who knew the late Mr. B. S. Williams, of 
Holloway, must join heartily with Mr. Findlay in his 
desire to see some sort of memorial raised to the memory 
of so esteemed a nurseryman, yet I trust uo one will be 
found to favour the institution of more medals or 
competitive prizes. Memorials should always have 
about them some practical nature or object, and should 
especially be non-permanent. Any memorial which 
endures beyond twenty years, passes beyond the period 
at which any ordinary man’s memory is kept green. 
A new generation who never heard of the respected 
dead has in that time grown up, and these wonder 
why anyone’s virtues they did not know of should be 
commemorated. A memorial that .lapses in a given 
term of years has the merit of being raised with com 
parative ease, but one of a permanent kind calls for so 
big a sum, that both the collection and the object 
suffers. The great charm incidental to the Wildsmith 
Memorial is found at once in its terminability before that 
esteemed gardener is quite forgotten, whilst it renders 
great and good service to the unfortunate living. Some 
£140 is thus made capable of rendering far more 
good than would ten times that sum sunk in a fund to 
furnish prizes or medals. It is hoped that the object of 
the memorial will be clearly defined before any attempt 
is made to collect subscriptions.— D. 
Eckford’s Primrose Sweet Pea. 
There is an undoubted flavour of saintly egoism in the 
criticism of St. Andrew, concerning this Sweet Pea. 
To call anything primrosy in hue, is. to bless with very 
faint praise indeed. Had Mr. Eckford’s Pea been a 
Chrysanthemum, for instance, it would have been 
termed Golden Queen or Yellow King, or had some 
other exaggerated appellation ; but as it is only a Sweet 
Pea of a sulphur tint, Mr. Eckford modestly calls it 
Primrose. Considering that it is the first Sweet Pea 
raised which shows a yellow tendency, we should be 
grateful at once that the raiser has been so successful, 
and yet so modest. I do not see, even though primrose 
falls so short of a saint’s ideal yellow, that it should 
not be put into commerce, for there are many who will 
like to grow it, because of its novel colour. Of course 
Mr. Eckford will try again, but he needs, in a matter 
that requires long life and ample patience, encourage¬ 
ment of a more wordly and less saintly order.— A. 
Dean. 
Scabiosa caucasica amcena. 
There are several distinct forms of Scabiosa caucasica 
in cultivation, including the subject ot this notice, 
whose chief merits over the type are that it flowers two 
or three weeks earlier, constituting a good recom¬ 
mendation for the plant. The radical leaves are 
undivided, while those on the lower part of the stem 
are deeply divided into linear segments. The flower 
heads are of great size, with long ray flowers of a pleasing 
shade of pale blue. Being perennial and perfectly 
hardy, it should soon become widely disseminated 
where herbaceous plants find favour in gardens. 
Marsdenia ereeta. 
The silvery grey heart-shaped leaves of this old- 
fashioned climber have a very distinct appearance when 
seen in the vicinity of other subjects of dark and light 
green hues. It was introduced from south-eastern 
Europe in 1597 ; but being liable to get killed in severe 
winters, even when planted against a wall, it has not 
become very widely disseminated in British gardens. 
The flowers are small, white, and freely produced in 
axillary cymes, and have a strong and peculiar odour, 
resembling that of the Dandelion. A flowering plant 
may be seen on a wall by the herbaceous ground at 
Kew. 
The Goat’s Beard. 
Such is the name applied to Spmea Aruncus, the male 
and female flowers of which are on different plants. 
Horticulturally the two plants are of different values, 
inasmuch as the male plant is the most showy when in 
bloom. Both generally attain a height of 4 ft., and 
have ample biternately divided leaves. The flowers of 
both are very small, and borne in huge panicles ; but 
while the flowers of the female appear to be carried on 
slender branching spikes, those of the male have a more 
plumy and elegant appearance, on account of the 
numerous long stamens, which project far beyond the 
petals. The female plant seems to be the first to come 
into bloom, and the flowers lasting only for a short time, 
give place to the fruits which soon become greeenish. 
The male flowers last in beauty much longer, and 
although in both cases they are of a creamy white, 
those of the male flowers are most nearly pure white, 
and certainly very handsome when seen in a mass. 
Shirley Poppies. 
There are two grand beds of-these in the seed trial 
grounds of Messrs. Sutton & Sons, at Reading. As the 
railway train passes along the line, the passengers 
catch glimpses of a floral panorama of great extent and 
almost unimagined beauty. Almost every tint seen in 
flowers can be observed in the form of large masses, and 
one realises the exceeding beauty of many of the hardy 
annuals when seen cn masse.. From the deep purple 
form of Convolvulus minor down to the snowy purity 
of the white Tom Thumb Clarkia integripetala, there is 
comprised an immense variety of tints, and the plariter, 
assisted by nature, literally and actually “ painteth 
pictures mile on mile,” as Emerson sings ; but the 
beds of Shirley Poppies are something astonishing, so 
fine in form aud so varied in colour. One huge bed of 
autumn-sown plants, which came into flower early, 
has passed the meridian of its glorious floral display, 
and is gradually sinking down to the rest of the seed¬ 
bearing period ; but another very large and imposing 
bed, raised from seeds sown in spring, is rapidly coming 
into flower, and will be in beauty for some time. It 
could be wished that the blossoms were more persistent 
in regard to durability. Their undoubted adaptability 
for deeorative purposes is greatly discounted by the fact 
that the petals soon drop ; but their beauty in a cut 
state can be prolonged by severing the blooms when 
about half expanded, and I think they would be found 
to last longer in well-moistened coco-fibre than in 
water.— R. D. 
Dracaena australis Doucstti. 
As an ornamental plant this is now turning out 
better than when it first made its appearance in this 
country. The variegation is much more pronounced 
in young plants obtained from the old one by means of 
the root tubers or suckers. While the leaves are yet 
quite young the margin is creamy yellow, but, as in 
many other subjects, this fades to white as the leaves 
reach maturity. The midrib of the lower half of the 
leaf is bronzy red, thus presenting an additional 
attraction. In short, although originally imported 
under the name of D. Doucetti, it is merely a variegated 
form of the old and well known D. australis, whose 
semi-hardy character is one of its chief recommendations. 
The plant will therefore be suitable not only for those 
who have the convenience of a greenhouse, but for 
amateurs who can only accommodate it in a window. 
The rigid or leathery leaves render it well adapted for 
standing the dry atmosphere of a room. We noted a 
fine batch of young plants in the nursery of Messrs. 
J. Laing & Sons, Forest Hill. 
Sidalcea Candida. 
Under the name of Sidalcea oregana a number of plants 
including the present are sometimes placed by botanists ; 
but for horticultural purposes several of them are so 
distinct, not merely in the colour of their flowers, but 
also in habit, that horticulturists may be almost 
excused for growing them under different names. 
That under notice is one of the dwarfest, and does not 
as a rule much exceed 2 ft. in height, although it is 
frequently less. The flowers are comparatively large, 
pure white, and arranged in a terminal raceme. The 
leaves are deeply and palmately divided into linear 
segments. The plant is quite hardy, and presents no 
difficulty to the cultivator, either in preserving or pro¬ 
pagating it. The latter may be effected either by 
cuttings or division of the rootstock. It is now flower¬ 
ing in the nursery of Messrs. J. Laing & Sons, Forest 
Hill. 
Thymus Serpyllum coccineus. 
Our native wild Thyme is well known for its liability 
to variation even in a state of nature, and from time to 
time many of these variations have been sufficiently 
well marked to merit cultivation. As far as the flowers 
are concerned, two varieties may here be noticed—- 
namely, T. S. rotundifolius, with large flowers beauti¬ 
fully marked on the lower lip with white, and the 
subject under notice, the blooms of which are, although 
not strictly scarlet, as indicated by the varietal name, 
purple and marked with crimson. It belongs to the 
northern form, which is the most typical, and bears 
only one head of flowers on a stem ; whereas the plant 
which is more common in thesouth bearsnumerous heads 
along the somewhat elongated stems. T. S. coccineus 
is therefore very dwarf, and so exceedingly floriferous 
that when in bloom it covers the ground as with a 
carpet of the richest purple-red. Those who have seen 
it in the nursery of Messrs. J. Laing & Sons, Forest 
Hill, were quite charmed with it. It is suitable for 
rockwork or for covering banks, or even level ground. 
Calamintha grandiflora. 
The large-flowered Calamint is an old-fashioned subject 
that has been much neglected within recent year3. It 
was originally introduced from Italy in 1596, and is 
closely allied to Thymus, Melissa, and others of that 
affinity, and was formerly grown under the name of 
Melissa grandiflora. While of dwarf habit and 
admirably adapted for culture on rockwork, it is of 
comparatively slow increase, and, therefore, not liable 
to overrun or outcrowd its neighbours. Several species 
are natives of this country, and others come from the 
southern parts of Europe ; but though all are pretty, 
none of them have flowers approaching in size those of 
the subject under consideration. The flowers are rosy 
purple variegated with darker purple and white upon 
the lip. The foliage is pleasantly fragrant, and 
flowering shoots might be employed for mixing with 
cut flowers. It may be seen in the collection of hardy 
herbaceous plants in the nursery of Messrs. J. Laing 
& Sons, Forest Hill. 
Swan River Daisy. 
Some of the prettiest of annuals get neglected, while 
many cultivators cling to the old-fashioned kinds year 
after year with a pertinacity that is as remarkable as 
true. Botanically, the name of the plant is Brachycome 
iberidifolia, a near ally to the Daisy in structure, but 
the habit of the plant is quite different. The typical 
form has bright blue ray florets with a blackish blue 
disk. There is a white-rayed variety, chiefly interesting 
by way of contrast to, and for mixing with the typical 
blue kind. The lower leaves are pinnatisect, and the 
upper ones twice divided with linear segments. The 
plant is annual and is equally well adapted for pot as 
for open-air culture. The stems do not exceed 12 ins. 
in height when grown in the open air, but are often 
much shorter, therefore affording an additional ad¬ 
vantage to those who attempt its cultivation in pots 
and have little space for tall plants. By sowing at 
different times a succession can be maintained for a 
long time. A batch both of the blue and the white 
forms may be seen in the gardens of the Royal Horti¬ 
cultural Society at Chiswick. 
Cistus Cyprius. 
Both the leaves and the flowers of this species recall 
those of C. ladaniferus maculatus ; but the leaves of 
the latter are almost sessile, while those of the former 
are stalked. The flowers of C. Cyprius are large, pure 
white with a yellow claw, and a dark purple blotch on 
each petal a little above the base. The stamens are 
comparatively short, orange-yellow, and form a fine 
finish to the centre of the flower. At a short distance 
the latter resembles a white Rose, and very beautiful is 
a large bush laden with its axillary and terminal cymes 
of flowers. The leaves are lanceolate, leathery, and of 
a dark olive-green in summer and winter. Last winter 
was very favourable to the different species of Cistus, 
so that the plants attained some size, and now more 
than repay the small amount of trouble bestowed upon 
their culture. Wherever these are grown, the banks 
and shrubberies are now objects of great attraction. 
There are numerous species with white flowers, or white 
blotched with dark purple, as well as rosy purple 
blooms ; but the white-flowered kinds, including the 
above, are, if anything, the most conspicuous and 
attractive. 
—--»£««.- 
OUR POULTRY YARD. 
We all know the curate who said that when he went 
into the country to live he should keep a sheep and 
have kidneys for breakfast every morning. We felt 
like that with regard to keeping fowls and having new- 
laid eggs. One of the first things we did was to rail, 
or rather wire, off a portion of the back garden and 
cause" booths to be erected therein. We got a list of 
necessaries from a well-known and popular work on 
poultry-keeping. The floor must be raised about a foot 
above the level of the ground. This meant two men 
and a boy with concrete for a week. The walls of the 
house must be thick, aud the roof must project to cast 
the rain off. We had thought of mere wooden sheds ; 
