May 18, 1895. 
THE GARDENING WORLD- 
595 
PANSIES AND VIOLAS. 
For 6/- I will send the following 13 vars. fancv Pans ; es— 
Miss Stirling, 1895 vvas awarded the special prizes of the 
Scottish Pansy Society at Edinburgh and Glasgow for the best 
new Pansy in the shows; H. A. Stuart, 1895, the best dark 
fancy Pansy yet offered ; Col. Coats, Jas. McFarlane. Marmion, 
Mrs. J. Currie, Jessie Ford, Jessie Russell, Lord Roberts, Mr. 
VV. McIntosh, R. Young, Madge Lockhead, Col. J. S. Stirling, 
all 1894 varieties. 
For 3/- I will send Jessie Travis, 1895 var., John Black, Lady 
Terry, Miss Arthur, 1894 var., A. H. Murray, H. McGregor, 
Jas. Currie, M. Beatson, Janet Brand, Mrs. C. E. Scarce, Mrs. 
McCorquodale, Mrs. R. Niven, Tom Terry. 
SHOW PANSIES. 
For 3/- I will send 4 vars. of 1894 and 11 choice competition 
sorts. 
For 3/- I will send 5 new vaiieties and it best 1894 varieties 
VIOLAS. 
The best 13 Viclas in cultivation for 4/-Tara, Milkmaid, 
Purple Empress, Lizzie Graham, 1895 var., Blue Garter, 
Hibernia, Cecilia, Iona Craigi, Erin; 189 [ varieties; H. W. 
Stuart, Accushla, Mrs. C. F. Gordon. 
The best 13 rayless Violas for 4/-Tara, Geo. Lord, Mary 
Stewart, Mary Scott, Oriole, Flower of the Day, Cordelia, 
Border Witch, Vestal, Sweet Lavender, Luteala, President, 
Christiana. 
For 2-6—Admiration, best purple, Beautiful Snow, pure 
white, Hibernia, violet and lilac, Mary Stuart, primrose, Gold¬ 
finch, dull gold, edged pale purple, Ariel, mauve, shaded 
white, Princess Beatrice, deep rose, Lemon Queen, pale lemon, 
Duchess, pink self, Charmer, crimson and lavender, Mary 
Scott, whits, suffused lilac, Lovelight, pure white, picoteed 
lavender; 100 plants in these 12 varieties tor 12/6, 50 for 7/5. 
VIOLETTAS. 
Sweet-scented Violettas, 12 varieties for 2/6, 100 plants in 5 
varieties for 10/-. 
CATALOGUES FREE. 
S. PYE, Catterall, Garstang, Lane. 
FERNS SPECIALITY. 
A MAGNIFICENT STOCK IN IMMENSE VARIETY. 
Catalogue (No. 40) Free on Application. 
W. & J. BIRKENHEAD, F.R.H.S., 
Fern Nurseries, Sale, near Manchester. 
ORCHIDS. 
Clean Healthy Plants at Low Prices. 
Always worth a visit of inspection. Kindly send for Catalogue. 
JAMES CYPHER, 
Exotic Nurseries, CHELTENHAM. 
Carnations! Carnations ! 
Carnations! 
The Choicest Varieties in Cultivation, from the 
late Mr. Dodwell's Garden, 
FROM 6s. PER DOZEN. UPWARDS. 
DESCRIPTIVE LIST ON APPLICATION TO— 
ARTHUR MEDHURST, 
THE COTTAGE. STANLEY ROAD, OXFORD. 
FLORISTS’ FLOWERS 
AND 
HARDY BORDER PLANTS. 
FORBES’ ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUE 
for 1895 is now ready, and will be posted to all intending 
Purchasers. 
The new Catalogue for 1895 is enlarged to about 150 pages 
and very materially improved, embracing everything new and 
old worth cultivating in the way of Florists’ Flowers and 
Hardy Plants with accurate description and prices, copious 
notes as to their origin, how, and where best to grow, a full 
index of the common or popular names of Hardy Border 
Plants and a vast mass of other valuable information that 
cannot be had elsewhere, which renders this the best, most 
reliable, and complete catalogue ever issued on this popular 
class of plants. 
JOHN FORBES, Nurseryman, Hawick, Scotland. 
JACK FROST 
has caused many losses that can be made good in 
an easy and cheap manner by purchasing the follow¬ 
ing bulbs and plants which I can recommend as being 
first class. 
BEGONIAS, SINGLE. 
20,000 grand bulbs, mixed colours, finest ever offered 
at the price, 3s. per dozen. 
PELARGONIUMS, SHOW AND DECORATIYE. 
Fine plants in best kinds, 6s., gs , and 12s. per dozen. 
ZONAL PELARGONIUMS. 
Best kinds only, 6 for 2s. 6d., 12 for 4s. 
IYY-LEAF PELARGONIUMS. 
A very choice lot, 6 for 2s. 6d., 12 for 4s. 
DOUBLE PETUNIAS. 
Extra fine new kinds, 6 for 3s. 6d., 12 for 6s. 
Send for Catalogue, Free. 
H. «J. JONES, 
Ryecroft Nursery, Hither Green, Lewisham. 
THE NEW EARLY STRAWBERRY FOR 1893 . 
“ Stevens Wonder.” 
The earliest variety in cultivation and very prolific, 
solid fruit, good flavour, high perfume. 
Awarded First-class Cert.ficates, Royal Horti¬ 
cultural Society and Royal Botanic Society, 1895. 
See Gardeners' Chronicle, March 2 ; Journal 0] Horti¬ 
culture, March 14; and The Garden, March 16. 
Having purchased the whole of the stock of this 
grand new early Strawberry from the raiser, we have 
pleasure in offering it as follows :— 
Strong plants in pots, £5 per 100 ; 15/- per doz. 
,, Runners, £3 per 100 ; g/- per doz. 
Ready for Delivery Early in July. 
Eai’iy Orders requested as stock is limited. 
Further particulars upon application :— 
WM. CUTBUSH &, SON, 
Highgate Nurseries, London, and Barnet, Herts. 
For Index to Contents see page 605. 
" Gardening is the purest of human pleasures, and the greatest 
refreshment to the spirit of man ”— Bacon. 
Cfa ifbrhl. 
Edited by BRIAN WYNNE. 
SATURDAY , MAY 18th, 1895. 
NEXT WEEK'S ENGAGEMENTS. 
Tuesday, May 21st.—Royal Horticultural Society's Temple 
Show (3 days), 
Wednesday, May 22nd.—Orchid Sale at Protheroe & Morris’ 
Rooms. 
CTpring Gardening.— The notions and 
opinions as to what should constitute 
spring gardening are no doubt as varied 
and as antagonistic or contradictory as are 
the individuals who conceive them. 
Amongst civilised communities, however, 
there must always be a certain amount of 
conventionalism upon the point, that is, an 
informal agreement as to a certain standard, 
to which there will always be a minority of 
minds to take exception. The love of 
novelty and change will also insure the 
shifting of that standard of opinion as to 
the most tasteful and pleasing arrange¬ 
ments of the subjects used in spring garden¬ 
ing. The comparisons that are made by 
travellers between what they see in this 
and foreign countries are odd and startling 
as they are contrary to probability. Some 
of them go into raptures over such things 
as Wistarias, Bignonias, Lantanas, and 
Bougainvilleas just as if those things were 
strangers to us ; but to compare them with 
spring gardening in this country is ridicu¬ 
lous. Many an old Wistaria gets quite 
gorgeous in this country in early summer, 
and often flowers well a second time in late 
summer. The others are successfully 
grown under glass, and it is only a question 
of space as to the quantity of bloom obtain¬ 
able. An avenue of Amherstia nobilis 
such as that mentioned recently in the 
Botanic Gardens, Calcutta, by our corres¬ 
pondent is, of course, an impossibility in 
this country. The trees of northern 
countries or temperate climates are more 
sober in their hues, though none the less 
floriferous in many cases. For instance, 
what can we expect more gorgeous than an 
avenue of Horse Chestnuts, a liberal distri¬ 
bution of Hawthorns single and double, 
white, pink, and red amongst the other 
trees about a park or private establish¬ 
ment. or a free distribution of the twm 
species of Laburnam round the margin of 
a wood or plantation. Turn to our orchards 
and say what has been more charming 
than the profusion of white blossom on 
the Plum and Pear intermingling with the 
rose, pink and white of the Apples, and the 
snowy masses of Cherries. Usually a dis¬ 
tinct period elapses between the blossom¬ 
ing of these subjects, but the peculiarities 
of the season has brought them forward 
almost simultaneously this year. 
Notwithstanding the raptures and odd 
comparisons made by a correspondent in 
more than one of our contemporaries, 
between the above subjects and spring 
gardening there can be no comparison at 
all. “ Nowhere in all the earth ” has the 
correspondent “ seen such refulgency of 
beauty” as in Hyde Park. We duly 
noted the attractive character of the same 
when the Hyacinths were in perfection, 
but it never occurred to us to compare the 
floral display with the trees and woody 
climbers of a tropical forest. Surely the 
bulb fields of Holland would have been a 
better comparison, even though their prim 
neatness as limited by the square and line, 
is suggestive of utilitarianism and nursery 
convenience and necessity rather than com¬ 
binations and arrangements of colour for 
mere decorative effect which spring garden¬ 
ing should be. There are people of taste 
who complain of the bedding arrangements 
in Hyde Park on account of their formality, 
and consider those of Regent’s Park more 
natural, pleasing and tasteful, though the 
display is far more limited. The chief 
complaint that can made against the 
arrangement in Hyde Park is that there 
are too many beds in contiguity that match 
one another in design, planting and colours 
all tending to monotony and sameness. It 
may be a remnant of the old Dutch garden¬ 
ing introduced to Kensington gardens so 
many years ago; but the form of the 
ground enforces restrictions, to some 
extent, as to variety and dissimilarity. 
We do not at all underrate the decorative 
effect of the gardening accomplished 
alongside of Park Lane whether in spring 
or summer. The contiguity of the flower 
beds to fences, streets and houses necessi¬ 
tates great regularity of design, otherwise 
there could be no beauty of appropriateness. 
Furthermore there is sufficient space in the 
various London Parks to imitate various 
styles of gardening, as is well demonstrated 
by the different conformation and environ¬ 
ment of Battersea, Finsbury, Victoria, 
Dulwich, and other parks as well as Kew 
Gardens. 
Then the legitimate question of all con¬ 
cerned to discuss is the material, that is, 
the plants to be used, and the most effec¬ 
tive and tasteful methods of displaying 
them. Plants intended for spring garden¬ 
ing in this country must of a necessity be 
hardy, and the beds may either be tem¬ 
porary or permanent or a judicious inter¬ 
mixture of both. The temporary beds 
would consist of those planted with bulbs 
and other spring flowering subjects to be 
dug up, and others substituted, in May or 
June to carry on the display till autumn. 
Beds planted permanently with subjects 
that flower in spring only would necessarily 
be dull during the remaining portion of our 
season ; but, apart from bulbs, a number of 
beds might be set apart for keeping up a 
display from spring onwards with what is 
conventionally understood as herbaceous 
plants. That is a feature of gardening that 
has hardly been touched upon by the parks. 
Some of them have begun to recognise 
the value of herbaceous plants, but as yet 
the latter are mostly confined to rockeries, 
and being scattered about promiscuously 
there is neither combination nor segrega¬ 
tion of colours for effect. For purely 
