July 4th, 1885. 
693 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
are shown off to the best advantage; and they amply 
repay a little extra labour. The colours range from 
pure white through various shades of pink to purple 
and deep crimson ; some are deliciously scented, and 
all are valuable when cut for decorative purposes. 
These and the Papaver orientate are of too large 
a growth for small places, and they are poor things 
when starved and cramped, but superb when well 
done. 
The Giant Poppies scattered about the garden 
brightens up the place, as the red coats of our soldiers 
do a crowd on a gala day. Next come the Pyrethrums 
which should be grown by everybody, for however 
small a garden may be, room could be found for some 
of them. They will grow anywhere and in any soil, 
but at the same time they well repay any extra care. 
Their greatest enemies are the slugs, and where these 
abound, a sharp look out must be kept or they will 
eat them all up. They are in full flo-wer now, and if 
cut over when past flowering, generally produce a 
in the April following, and the next season they may 
be transplanted anywhere. It is of the utmost 
importance that the seed be sown fresh, for if kept 
any time, not one in a hundred will germinate. Were 
it not for this peculiarity, the plant would most 
assuredly be more plentiful than it is. 
Among the other plants in flower and deserving of 
notice are Cistus florentinus, Gaillardias, Vibernum 
plicatum, Spiraea Aruncus, a fine back-row plant; 
Spiraea palmata, S. Ulmaria variegata, Orchis foliosa, 
Cypripedium spectabile, Campanula muralis, fine 
clumps, C. pulla, Rosa rugosa, Allium neapolitanum, 
Menziesia polifolia, M. polifoliaalba, Daphnecneorum, 
a real gem among hardy trailing plants ; Anthericum 
liliago major, Asperula odorata, Leptospermum 
prostratum, Caltha palustris flore-pleno, and Ver- 
bascum Phceniceum, which, scattered about among 
other things, proves useful in providing contrasts. 
There is a plant here also, 5 ft. high, of Coronilla 
glauca, which has stood out without the slightest 
There is a pleasant custom springing up in some 
parts which is well worthy of being followed. I 
allude to the practice of allowing neighbour's, whether 
rich or poor, to walk round the garden on Sunday 
afternoons, some confining the privilege to a month 
or six weeks during the height of summer, others 
extending it throughout the whole year. So far as I 
can learn, those who have been so generous as to 
throw open their gardens have had nothing to 
complain of, and the opportunity of walking through 
a good garden, if only of moderate dimensions, is 
a great boon to many of those whose own gardens are 
of the most limited extent. We cannot all have large 
gardens ourselves, but many of those who have 
would, by following the good example set by some, do 
much to brighten and cheer the lot of those less 
fortunately situated than themselves. In towns 
and suburban districts, some regulations would be 
necessary, but in villages the gardens might be 
thrown open to all who conduct themselves respect- 
OCHNA MULTIFLORA : FLOWERS YELLOW, SEELS PLUM-COLOURED. 
second crop of blooms in the autumn. The double- 
flowered varieties are first favourites here, but the 
single ones are very useful for vase decoration. A 
few of the best among doubles are Captain Nares, 
Delicatissima, Duchess of Edinburgh, Emile Lemoine, 
La Belle Blonde, Princess Metternich, Progress, Rem¬ 
brandt, Viscountess Cardwell, and Mdme. Boucharlet; 
these with Paeonies and Delphiniums are the most 
plentiful flowers in the garden just now. There 
are also some German and Spanish Irises in plenty, 
some of them very beautiful, and were they only 
Orchids would meet with more admirers than they 
do now. 
The better varieties of Foxglove are fine plants for 
back rows or scattered about among shrubs. How is 
it that these often do so badly when planted in the 
same spot a second time ? Dictamnus fraxinella and 
D. fraxinella alba, two of the oldest and best of our 
hardy border plants, are not so plentiful as they might 
be; they will live in the same spot for generations, 
but all attempts at dividing them fail. They can be 
readily raised, however, from seeds sown as soon as 
ripe. Cover the seeds with 1 in. of soil, keep the 
ground clean of weeds till the young plants appear 
protection during four winters. It is one of the very 
first plants grown in the greenhouse which I learnt 
the name of, yet seeing it here flowering profusely in 
the open air, I could hardly at first be certain as to its 
identity. If it can be depended upon to do as well 
everywhere, it ought to find a place in all collections 
of hardy shrubs. 
We are all congratulating ourselves on the abun¬ 
dance of Holly Berries, such a crop of which is very 
seldom seen; but what about the Oaks ? Many of 
those look very miserable. I cannot find any insects. 
Is it the sudden change from heat to cold, and the 
early morning frosts that have given them such a 
starved appearance ? I have for several years past 
noticed the withering up of the points on the young 
Pear-tree shoots, and have always been at a loss to 
account for it. It has taken place here under such 
varying conditions of temperature that it cannot 
result solely from the action of frost; generally it is 
confined to a few trees, which are affected in the 
same way almost every season. Are they scalded by 
the sun shining out suddenly in the middle of the 
day after a shower, or does the mischief arise from 
the roots ? 
fully, and very few will be found to avail themselves 
of the privilege who are not orderly in their behaviour. 
— W. B. G. 
— - — 
Wild Celery Seed.— The wild Celery seed of 
Chesapeake Bay, on which the ducks and geese feed, 
giving the flesh the delicious flavour so much prized 
by epicureans, is the curious water plant known as 
Vallisneria spiralis. This plant is among one of the 
wonders of vegetable life, and always entertains the 
studious. The leaves are long and grass-like, and 
the minute flowers have the sexes in separate flowers. 
At the time of flowering the thread-like flower stalks 
rise to the top of the water. The male flowers cast 
their pollen on the surface, and it floats along till 
caught by the female flowers. The male flowers die 
after shedding the pollen, but the little female with 
its embryo seed vessel draws in the flower stalk as if 
it were a spiral spring, down to the base of the plant 
among the grassy leaves, where it remains till mature. 
It is rare for even the botanist to get to see a seed 
vessel, and, as one might suppose, one is only to 
be obtained at all under some difficulty.— Gardeners' 
Monthly. 
