68 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
September 30, 1898. 
FllOttlCUliTOf^E. 
Single Cactus Dahlias. 
There are doubtless many who have not seen this 
new race and cannot conceive what they should be like 
Hitherto the ideal of a single Dahlia has been a flat 
bloom as circular as the compass could make it, 
with a single row of broad, overlapping florets. 
The single Cactus Dahlias merely differ in having 
longer and more pointed ray florets that may be 
flat, or revolute at the sides as in the double 
varieties. As a race, the single Cactus Dahlias will, 
like other new departures, have much opposition at 
first, but if the raisers be careful to send out only 
those of good type, they may yet find many 
admirers. 
A box of blooms of the new race has been sent us 
by Messrs. Dobbie & Co., Rothesay, Scotland, who 
have been putting them into commerce this season. 
Four of them were named varieties, and the rest 
seedlings. Some of the latter, particularly a large, 
deep scarlet one, had bold and striking flowers 
measuring 4 in. to 4§ in. across, but the florets were 
not so pointed, and in our opinion not so handsome 
as the named kinds. We do not see why they 
should not be as useful for cut flowers as the 
ordinary single kinds. They are certainly less 
formal, and therefore more artistic than those limited 
to the florists’ ideal, and in that respect may gain 
the approval of not a few. 
One of the finest of the named sorts is Ivanhoe, 
with long, pointed rays of a soft ro»y-purple with a 
crimson blotch at the base of each. Robert Burns 
is a more refined flower with long, pointed, nearly 
flat rays of a rich purple shaded with violet at the 
tips and on the reverse, and with crimson near the 
base. Another variety we prefer is Meg Merrilies 
on account of its clear and bright yellow colour. 
The florets are redexed at the sides and often more 
or less twisted. A much larger flower is Guy 
Mannering, measuring 3 in. to 4 in. across or more, 
and having white florets shaded with pale yellow at 
the base. The white portion is shaded with blush, 
deepening to pale pink with age. The florets are 
inclined to come in two rows. For mixing with cut 
flowers in autumn they supply many bright colours 
not to be found in such plenty in any other class of 
flowers. 
Pinks: Layers versus Pipings. 
In the Birmingham district, layering is resorted to 
for stock of the florist's varieties of Pinks, as indeed 
also for the border kinds, and there is a growing pre¬ 
ponderance of opinion as to the great advantage of 
layering over pipings, and leading growers adopt 
now only layering as a means of propagation, with 
the result that a large number of strong, bushy, 
well-rooted plants are now to be seen in the gardens 
of Pink growers about Birmingham. 
Some plants were sent by me a few days ago to a 
friend in Dumfriesshire and he replied that the 
plants were wonderfully strong and satisfactory, and 
were strongly an evidence of the advantages of layer¬ 
ing. I have had opportunities this year of seeing 
some of the best collections in the kingdom, and I 
will shortly send you my notes of some of them.— 
W.D. 
Pansies and Violas. 
I NEVER met with so much destruction amongst these 
plants as there is this year, and in some places they 
have the appearance of being thoroughly scorched 
up with the great heat and long drought. In the 
Midlands and the South I am afraid this is a 
general experience, but in the North of England and 
in Scotland the growers have been more fortunate. 
The experience of 1893 shows us this : that for 
Pansies and Violas well dug ground with a fair 
amount of good manure deeply dug in is a necessity, 
soil should not be over manured, but deep and 
good soil with invigorating material in the form of 
good manure underneath is necessary. For 
ordinary decorative work borders should be well 
prepared in October for planting out early in 
November, so as to get the plants well established be¬ 
fore winter,planting rather deeply and firmly. If early 
spring planting is preferred, say in March or early 
in April, the ground should be well manured and 
prepared through the winter in readiness for early 
spring planting. 
Where plants have been killed by the heat or 
drought, or are in such a state as to be scarcely worth 
retaining, I strongly advise a healthy stock of young 
plants being secured in October and planted in a 
cold frame for a fortnight or so to recover themselves 
and make more root, and be then either planted out 
firmly or kept in a cold frame with plenty of air in 
any but very severe weather until early in spring. 
Some may feel disheartened from their failures 
this year, but it should be borne in mind that this 
has been an exceptionally hot and dry season, such 
as we are not anxious to encounter again. In the 
North of England and in Scotland, with a cooler 
and moister climate, growers have been more 
fortunate, although very few have escaped without 
losses ; still. Pansies and Violas have braved the hot 
summer much better in the North, as will have been 
noticed by Messrs. Dobbie & Co's, superb displays 
at Shrewsbury. London, and elsewhere of their 
Violas and Pansies in August and September from 
Rothesay. 
Failures have taught a few lessons to amateurs. 
To plant if possible in a position where there is 
shade in the middle part of the day, but not under 
trees. A cool soil if possible where there is a little 
moisture, with a little rotten manure dug in, and if a 
light soil, then work in in the autumn some good 
rotten manure and surface the plants occasionally 
during the summer, so as to prevent evaporation 
from the soil as much as possible.— IF. D. 
-» 1 - 
POMPON DAHLIAS. 
These scarcely meet with so much recognition, as 
from their individual beauty and usefulness for 
ordinary floral decorations, they justly deserve. 
Either for making up into bouquets, or the dressing 
of vases, I think them much better than single 
Dahlias, which soon drop their petals, and many of 
which are altogether too large. Some have flowers 
of very diminutive dimensions, which can be used in 
comparatively small vases, or epergnes, and the 
tipped varieties are exceedingly pretty, as well as 
mostly floriferous. I examined a large collection in 
the Messrs. Peed’s Mitcham Road Nursery the other 
day, and when selecting a few to make a note of, I 
made it a point to choose the finest blooming kinds. 
Notes made of sorts seen on the exhibition table are 
not of the same value to the general public as those 
taken from growing plants, because it may, and often 
will happen that Ai on the show table is not so free 
flowering as B 2, which, owing to perhaps, a better 
habit and greater freedom of flowering, is of the 
greater general value. 
Just a word for Fire King or Glare of the Garden, 
which I still think is the best decorative Dahlia ex¬ 
tant, its free-flowering qualities entitling it to that 
distinction. Pompon Darkness in nearly black; 
Laelia, reddish buff, tipped with white; Adonis, 
white with a crimson edge ; Gem, bright scarlet—a 
real gem ; Fair Ellen, nearly white, with just a shade 
of lilac on the edges of the petals; Winnie, light 
primrose-yellow, very small; Juliette, yellow, shaded 
with orange, very free; Little Dear, white, edged 
with crimson; Royalty, orange, crimson edged; 
Ariel, orange-buff, very pretty; Nelly Mackray, 
reddish-salmon ; and Rose Perry, sulphur ground, 
tipped with rose-lake, and remarkably free.— G. 
-- 
CHRYSANTHEMUM 
NOTES. 
As we shall soon be in the thick of the Chrysanthe¬ 
mum season, a few notes in advance as to the con¬ 
dition of the plants and the prospects held out with 
regard to the quality of the flowers likely to be pro¬ 
duced may be of interest. After the abnormally hot 
dry season which we have passed through, with its 
attendantheavy labours in watering, it is to be hoped 
that an abundance of superb blooms will repay the 
growers for their assiduous attentions. They may, 
I think, look forward to this result with full con¬ 
fidence that they will be able to adorn the exhibi¬ 
tion tables with flowers which will delight and 
satisfy all her Majesty the Autumn Queen'sliege sub¬ 
jects a few weeks hence. Just now things look full of 
promise. The warm sunny weather has perfected 
the wood growth, till, at least in those we are 
specially referring to, it is as hard as oak, and the 
main stems are of unusual size, with superb foliage 
well preserved down to the pots. 
Out of curiosity I measured some leaves, and 
found them to be fully nine inches in length. There 
are instances to be found where from partial neglect 
in watering the lower leaves are gone. Where this 
is the case the flowers will not be what they would 
have been, but this remark will not apply to har¬ 
dened "’mum” growers who know full well what 
the consequences of neglect in this all-important 
matter are, and strain every nerve to avoid its oc¬ 
currence. From my own observation I believe this 
season will produce some of the grandest blooms 
ever seen on the exhibition tables. Some of the 
most forward are now under glass, and a few are in 
flower. 
I took a note of the following which are con¬ 
sidered by Mr. Shoesmith to give promise of becom¬ 
ing leading varieties: J. W. Seward possibly the 
best of the year, dark crimson ; J. Shrimpton, red ; 
Annie Hartshorn, white, grand ; Wm. Tricker, pink ; 
Amos Perry, light lemon yellow; Mdlle. Therese 
Ray, ivory white, most promising ; President Barral, 
rich rosy purple. These are all Japanese. Among 
incurved varieties Baron Hirsch bids fair to become 
very popular, and there are some American incurved 
varieties being grown under number which are 
likely to prove first rate. The advance made in the 
Japanese varieties in the direction of denseness, fine 
form, and quality of bloom in recent years is very 
remarkable, and we now find the incurved varieties 
of this section, for fine form and quality, treading 
hard on the heels of the Chinese Incurved sorts. 
The awards of judges having for some years 
favoured form and quality in these rather than mere 
size has naturally educated the public to seek a 
higher standard than was formerly the case, and 
growers for exhibition confine themselves more to 
the growing of varieties with flowers of the desired 
type by gradually discarding those which can only 
give them loose and flat flowers.— IV.B.G. 
-- 
MORE ABOUT ONIONS. 
I BELIEVE this to have been one of the best Onion 
seasons on record, for I have seen more large and 
handsome examples tabled at exhibitions than in 
any previous year of my gardening experience. At 
Glasgow, the Onions in the collection of Mr. McBean 
(and such is the case every year) were of the finest 
quality ever seen in the North, and his exhibit of six 
could hardly be surpassed ; but many others at the 
same exhibition were nearly equal to those referred 
to. At Edinburgh, Stirling, and Dundee the usually 
fine exhibits appeared to be excelled this year in 
fineness of quality, as well as in size. Too often 
size decides the award (here w’e note what you state 
regarding Mr. Miles’s judging). But large Onions, 
however handsome, should have no chance of 
obtaining the awards if they are not firm and pre¬ 
pared to keep till late in the following spring. 
Most of the fine Onions grown now are raised 
under glass, or in warmth in some structure. I note 
this because one year I was passing through a 
foundry with one of the best Onion growers I ever 
knew, and in odd corners boxfuls of Onions and 
Leeks were to be seen under preparation for the 
autumn contests at local shows, and some of them 
found their way to the Edinburgh and Glasgow 
exhibitions. I have a number of Onions pitted one 
against the other as usual, but Veitch’s main Crop, 
along with its synonym Banbury Improved comes well 
to the front—out-distancing many others. Cranston’s 
is the largest and handsomest, but by no means the 
best matured, and will be used first. This Onion 
has led in the prize list in Scotland more than any 
other which we have seen. Some years ago we 
judged Onions at Banbury, where 105 lots were 
tabled for three prizes. Banbury and Wroxton were 
the winners.— Slirling. 
-- 
A BUSHY ALLAMANDA. 
The most popular of all the known Allamandas is 
A. Hendersoni; but to see it in its most perfect form, 
the roof of a house must be accorded it, where its 
robust and vigorous nature can expend itself, and 
then develop the profusion of bloom for which it is 
noted. When grown in pots, it has to be tied down 
into unnatural forms, and even then requires a deal 
of attention to make it bloom with any degree of 
satisfaction. Allamanda Williamsii is naturally an 
erect growing kind, with flowers as large as those of 
A. Chelsoni, and of a clear, bright yellow, striated 
with orange lines in the throat like those of A. 
Neriifolia. It is therefore supposed to be a hybrid 
between those two inheriting the erect and bushy 
habit of both, with the orange lines of the latter 
upon the interior.— J. H. 
[The accompanying illustration will give an idea 
of the habit of the plant which is erect, branching 
and bushy. The separate spray represents the 
flower’s natural size, and shows the floriferous 
character of the upper part of the shoots.— Ed.] 
