758 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
July 29, 1893. 
splendid Delphiniums, in variety, and Phloxes of all 
colours. But for the herbaceous border here, as 
elsewhere, our party were " a day after the fair , 
in this most phenomenal season, almost everything 
showy or effective had already bloomed ! 
In the fruit department, by no means a small one 
at Eaton, Grapes were well done. Madresfield Court 
was in fine condition, and the whole of the Muscats 
and Black Hamburghs left nothing to be desired. 
Melons, too, were in splendid form. But far and 
above all other astonishing things in the kitchen and 
flower gardens at Eaton Hall was the total absence 
of what the French so aptly term mauvaises 
herbes. On gardeners, as a body, the curse of 
Cain lies heavy, and heavily do they groan under it, 
but from the extensive kitchen and flower gardens of 
Eaton it should seem this curse has been lifted, and 
they are no longer under ban ; or is it through the 
untiring watchfulness and vigilant care of Mr. 
Barnes that here absolutely no weed is to be 
found ? 
But the charm of Eaton Hall consists not in its 
gardens, however well tended, nor in the hall itself, 
which to most people is disappointing, though from 
many parts of the grounds it makes a noble appear¬ 
ance—not in these lies the charm of Eaton, but in 
its lovely landscape vistas, in its far-stretching lawns 
of brightest emerald, in its woodlands, and gleaming 
lakelets, and beautiful river scenery, in the ensemble 
of which Art is so cunningly blended with Nature as 
to make the very perfection of the landscape gar¬ 
dener’s skill—the ars celare artem. Through these 
glades, and “verdurous glooms,’’ and “winding, 
mossy ways,” and by these waters, with their mar¬ 
gins of rush, and reed, and flag, and sedge, one 
might wander in delicious reverie for half a summer's 
day, nor deem that man’s hand had had here any 
part! 
Specially interesting is Eaton to the arboriculturist 
by the vast variety of its trees and shrubs, about one 
or two of which the botanists of the party were 
sorely puzzled, regretting the absence of a certain 
venerable professor, rich in botanical lore, who, being 
“ called in marriage,” could not on this occasion 
come to their assistance! The collection of oaks, 
above all, was interesting, and seldom have we seen the 
common oak and mossy-cupped oak in such splendid 
condition. Among the beautiful family of the 
Coniferae, Cedars and Scotch Firs were distinctly 
suffering, but the rest of the cone-bearers appeared 
to be enjoying themselves, and the deciduous Cypress 
was in exuberant .health There were many 
beautiful varieties of the Maple, and near to these, 
one of the most vigorous Tulip-trees we have ever 
seen in these latitudes. Of the trees used for mass¬ 
ing, in the pleasure grounds, we noticed that very 
large use was made of the Acer Negundo variegata, 
which is always so striking, and the golden Yews and 
Retinosporas. 
Three or four hours had been spent in exploring 
the beautiful gardens, pleasure grounds, and park 
(with its fine herd of deer), and at four o’clock, or a 
little after, the party were seated at a knife and fork 
tea, in a wooden shed provided for that purpose on 
the banks of the Dee, and near the landing stage. 
The shed, being open at the sidek, gave free access 
to those denizens of the air which, though minute, 
are often troublesome. Wasps were decidedly in 
evidence, and invited themselves in large and ever- 
increasing numbers to a share of the viands provided, 
reminding one of the harpies in Virgil’s lines:— 
Diripiuntque dapes, contactuque omnia foedant 
Immundo 
This incident, though in a sense unpleasant, partook 
of the farcial, through the fact of a famous inventor 
of insecticides who was present being cast hors de 
combat in a fight with the common enemy ! 
By six o’clock the party had started on the return 
journey, by boat on the Dee ; nor shall we soon for¬ 
get the pleasures of the sail down that beautiful 
river to Chester, in the cool air of the evening of a 
summer-day that was all but perfect; for although 
copious rain had descended on the previous night, 
not a drop had fallen during the journey, and the 
-whole atmosphere had a penetrating freshness that 
was delightful to breathe. Add to this the charm of 
music, vocal and instrumental, and the inspiring 
sight of a hundred gay pleasure boats, with their 
human freight full of jubilant life, cleaving the quiet 
waters. Some glance was permitted at the quaint 
old city ; and songs, and lively stories, and many 
jests, enlivened the journey homeward.— A. Stansfield, 
in Manchester City News. 
THE HERBACEOUS BORDER, 
Choice Plants in Flower. 
Hvmenocallis fulva. —There are several varie¬ 
ties of this grand old border plant, the double one 
being known as H. Kwanso. This has' bronzy- 
orange flowers, and when in its best condition is 
very striking. The variegated sub-variety of H. 
Kwanso is a showy and striking plant when well 
grown so as to have the foliage in prime condition, 
and might more often be grown in pots than it is. 
The typical form has flowers of the same hue as the 
double one; all may be grown to perfection in good 
garden soil. 
Achillea Ptmarmica, The Pearl. —The old 
double form of the Sneezewort has been much 
lauded for its utility in the cut state ; and where white 
flowers of moderate size and great durability are 
required, it is certainly a valuable plant. The new 
variety named The Pearl has much larger flower 
heads, and requires only to be compared with the old 
one for its superiority to become evident. 
Lobelia splendens Victoria. —It rarely happens 
that a plant has good flowers and fine foliage at the 
same time; yet such is the case with the plant 
under notice. The leaves are of a dark bronzy-red, 
and the flowers of a brilliant scarlet. The name of 
the plant is but too frequently interchangeable with 
that of L. cardinalis in collections. The last-named 
has narrow segments to the flower and broad leaves, 
while those of L. splendens and its varieties are 
narrow and their flowers have broad Segments. 
Dianthus Seguieri.— Comparatively few of the 
species of Dianthus are cultivated to any extent in 
gardens, especially as a border flower, but D. 
Seguieri might well be utilised in this way for the 
quantity of large, rosy-purple flowers it produces. 
Near the centre is a zone of small carmine spots. 
The stems grow to a height of g in. to 14 in:, 
according to the richness of the soil and the charac¬ 
ter of the season, and branch freely above the 
middle. 
Veronica incana. —There are several forms of 
this plant in gardens, the dwarfer ones being the 
more typical, and although all are more or less 
hoary, some of the dwarf sorts are quite silvery, and 
are used for carpet bedding purposes. F'or the her¬ 
baceous border, the taller kinds, generally grown in 
gardens under the name of V. neglecta, are most 
suitable. Their foliage is generally greener, and the 
stems vary from 12 in. to 18 in. high, terminating in 
racemes 3 in. to 14 in. long of deep blue flowers. 
Gypsophila scorzonerifolia.— The stems of this 
species are procumbent like those of G. paniculata, 
but the flowers are decidedly larger, pink in bud, 
fading to blush and pure white when fully expanded. 
The leaves are of a deep glaucous hue, and mostly 
confined to the rootstock, and therefore occupy the 
centre of the plant while the flowering stems lie all 
round. It might be grown with great advantage for 
mixing with cut flowers in the same way as G. pani¬ 
culata with a different effect. 
Statice Limonum.— The forms of this plant are 
evidently numerous, more particularly when Conti¬ 
nental specimens are included. The typical form 
which grows upon our shores does not seem to be 
included. It has a close and compact panicle of 
flowers, and this condition it would probably retain 
under cultivation, and if so would certainly form a 
handsome addition to our border plants. Those 
forms in cultivation have long loose panicles of small 
blue flowers, and are certainly graceful. 
Saponaria officinalis flore pleno.— The sunny 
south is more suitable to this plant than the north, 
where it grows freely enough, but flowers very un¬ 
satisfactorily as a rule. The individual flowers are 
of good size, rosy-pink, and when a number of them 
are expanded at the same time, they are effective. 
Campanula carpatica alba.— This Bellflower 
forms a compact tuft 12 in. or more in height, and 
produces a profusion of bloom for several months 
together. It thrives well in any good garden soil, 
and the flower stalks are long enough to enable them 
to be cut for mixing with other flowers, for which 
purpose they are very effective 
Veronica virginica.— The stout habit of this 
plant enables it to be grown with a minimum of 
staking or without stakes at all in dry seasons like 
what the present has been. The lanceolate leaves 
are produced in whorls of five all up the stem to the 
point, from whence the racemes of flowers arise. 
The flowers are pink in bud and white when fully 
expanded with yellow anthers. The terminal raceme 
varies from 3 in. to 12 in. long, according to the 
strength of the stem, which, when strong, gives rise 
to an additional raceme in the axil of each of the 
leaves of the uppermost whorl. 
Adenophora liliiflora.— The species of this 
Campanulaceous genus are not very often seen in 
gardens, but that under notice is well worthy of cul¬ 
tivation for its elegant upright habit, and pyramidal 
panicle of drooping, bell-shaped, fragrant, light blue 
flowers. The species is a native of Central and 
Eastern Europe, and grows to a height of 2 ft*. bear¬ 
ing ovate, dark green leaves. 
Flatycodon grandiflorum Mariesi. — Every 
collection of herbaceous plants should become 
possessed of this plant, and particularly those with 
pretentions to a good representation of the Cam¬ 
panula family. The large, and widely-campanulate 
flowers are of a rich dark blue with a slight shade of 
purple, and darker veins. The stems are 6 in. to 
9 in. high, and furnished with rich, dark green foliage. 
The plant is a native of Japan and perfectly hardy. 
-- 
CAMPANULAS FOR THE ROCKERY. 
There is a charm about many of the Bellflowers 
that is ill supplied with other hardy plants at this 
season of the year. Many of the prettier ones of 
the smaller kinds never seem to get into general cul¬ 
tivation for some reason or other, but why, it is 
difficult to say. When once established, the most of 
them are able to take care of themselves, and if un¬ 
suitable for cut flowers, as a rule, they serve to keep 
the rockery gay for weeks together, and for that 
reason should be encouraged. The modern idea of 
growing flowers is for the purpose of cutting them, 
but the primary idea of a garden, or at all events, 
the ornamental part of it, should be to have it gay 
for as many months of the year as possible. Flowers 
that are grown in quantity for cutting purposes 
should be planted in the reserve garden only, so that 
whatever was cut, it would have no prej udicial effect 
on the ornamental part proper of the garden. 
The small or dwarf Bellflowers are numerous, but 
it is only necessary to mention the leading kinds now 
in bloom. One of the most widely distributed in 
gardens is Campanula pumila and its white variety 
C. p. alba, with blue and white flowers respectively. 
They do not exceed 4 in. to 6 in. in height, and bear 
racemes of drooping flowers not unlike those of the 
Harebell of our Heaths, but smaller. The radical 
leaves are numerous, ovate, and form a close cushion 
or carpet upon the ground, from which the flower 
stems arise, bearing narrower or lanceolate leaves. 
The white variety is perhaps the choicest, as blue 
kinds are more numerous. Somewhat akin to this 
species is C. pusilla with smaller blue flowers, but the 
leaves are not very numerous, and are mostly con¬ 
fined to the base; the stem leaves are smaller and 
fewer, so that the flower scape seems to be leafless. 
It produces suckers freely, by which the plant may 
easily be propagated. The short shoots that arise 
from the base of C. pumila may be used as cuttings 
in pots beneath a frame or hand-glass. 
Notwithstanding the bushy, floriferous character 
of C. Waldsteiniana, it is comparatively an unknown 
plant in private gardens. The flowers are bell¬ 
shaped, purplish blue with a dark blotch at the base, 
and are produced in greater profusion than in the 
case of C. pumila, for they almost hide the foliage 
when seen at its best. The leaves are small and 
lanceolate, while the flowers are produced in a short 
leafy raceme. The plant varies from 3 in. to 6 in. 
in height according to its vigour. There appears to 
be some affinity between this species and C. 
Thommasiniana, and indeed some authorities regard 
it as a variety of the former The habit of the two 
is the same, and if there is any difference C. 
Thommasiniana is the stronger grower of the two under 
certain conditions, attaining a height of 9 in. to 
12 in., and when planted on the edge of the pocket it 
gets borne down over the ledge by the weight of its 
own blossoms. The latter are much more tubular 
than those of C. Waldsteiniana, lilac, and produced 
in remarkable profusion. It will also grow in any 
ordinary soil if well drained, but if planted in the 
border proper it should be confined to the front row. 
The wild plant is a native of Italy and should be 
more freely planted here. 
Quite of a different type is C. alpina, which is 
generally considered more difficult to preserve in 
