July 23, 1898. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
745 
saiion of the flower. Irritation of the stigmatic 
surface of the flower is occasionally sufficient to 
cause the fruit to swell to some extent, but when the 
stones should be formed the fruit is at a loss to pro¬ 
ceed further and the tree shakes it off. 
Bedding Calceolarias not Flowering —Why .: 
The position you have given your plants is not a 
good one. It is too hot and dry, whereas Calceo¬ 
larias love a cool and shaded spot, although it should 
not be overhung with trees. 
Sweet Peas.— Enquirer : The formation of seed 
pods will undoubtedly lessen the production of 
flowers. You must either sacrifice the seed or a 
great part of the flower crop 
-» I - - 
CLIVIA MINIATA SUPERBA. 
Comparatively a few years ago this richly 
coloured variety was the best of the genus in 
gardens; but notwithstanding the large number of 
fine varieties, bearing massive flowers, that have 
been raised and put into commerce since then, the 
old favourite still finds many cultivators and 
admirers. The size and vigour of the leaves are 
fairly moderate, and the bright orange-scarlet 
flowers are produced in great profusion upon well 
grown plants. The only respect in which ic differs 
from the best of modern types is in the relative 
width of the segments, which do not overlap one 
another owing to their narrowness, but the bright¬ 
ness of their colour and freedom of flowering amply 
compensate the grower for his careful, cultural 
attention. The accompanying illustration shows a 
specimen which has been grown to splendid pro¬ 
portions by Mr. R. W. Saunders, gardener to J. 
Leadbetter, Esq., Lismore, Broughty Ferry, N.B., 
as will be seen by the number of trusses of bloom 
which the plant carries. The plant was raised from 
a cutting about five or six years ago, so that the 
number of crowns which it possesses is an indica¬ 
tion of the kindly cultural treatment to which it has 
been subjected during that short period by Mr. 
Saunders, who is also a successful grower of other 
members of the same family, including Eucharis 
grandiflorum, and Pancratium fragrans, of which we 
measured bulbs, 3 in. to 4 in. in diameter. The 
Clivia carried twenty trusses of bloom in 1897, an( ^ 
the photograph was taken this year. 
-- 
FLOWERING SHRUBS IN SEASON. 
Philadelphus Lemoinei (hybrid) is a charming 
bush when in full bloom. The flowers are pure 
white, delightfully fragrant, and last a good time on 
the plants. The scent is neither so overpowering as 
the common Mock Orange (P. coronarius) nor is the 
plant such a strong grower, and it is more fitting for 
mixed beds. 
P. grandiflorus is another good species now ex¬ 
panding its flowers. It is of the purest white, and 
sweetly scented. The growth is more alter the style 
of P. coronarius, so should be planted well back, 
and given plenty of room. The Mock Oranges re¬ 
quire pruning annually after flowering, especially 
the strong-growing kinds ; the first-named species 
merely requires the strongest shoots pinched to keep 
the plants symmetrical. 
Escallonia philippiana is another excellent 
shrub, now in flower, of the purest white, and the 
fragrance it emits is not unlike the Hawthorn. The 
foliage is very much smaller than in the other 
species. 
Leptospermum baccatum, so named here, but I 
think it must be L. laevigatum, is a pretty little 
white-flowering shrub. We have it in the open as well 
as on the wall, and in both positions is flowering well 
this year. On the bush in the open could be cut 
pieces from 4 ft. to 5 ft. long, laden with small, tiny 
blossoms, not at all unlike the Escallonia just men¬ 
tioned. It is a shrub rarely met with now. 
Lespedeza bicolor, otherwise known as Des- 
modium penduliflorum, is a pretty little pea-shaped 
flower, purplish in colour, not very showy, still 
pretty, and the foliage is finely cut, not unlike 
the Acacia, and closes up in the evening similar to 
the sensitive plant. 
Cytisus capitata is another useful flowering 
shrub for the month of July. The foliage is good, 
and the flowers yellow. Potentilla fruticosa, too, is 
very pretty, with yellow flowers of cup shape. Jas- 
minum revolutum, with yellow flowers, sweetly 
scented, does well in the open in this part. It also 
makes a good climber. 
Olearia stellulata is a charming little bush 
with pure white flowers, far in advance of O. 
Haastii. The former is planted near the dark 
flowered Weigela floribunda or W. Stelzneri, and 
has been greatly admired. These have just passed 
out of flower, and were at their best the third week 
in June. 
Then there are several of the bush-growing Rock 
Roses or Gum Cistus, some of them most handsome 
and distinct, and their many colours of the richest. 
Most of them are just now at their best, but will 
continue to expand, more or less, flowers for several 
weeks yet. They thrive luxuriantly in our genial 
climate in almost any position, while in cold localities 
a southern aspect should be chosen. The majority 
of the species, especially the dwarf ones, revel on 
the rockery overhanging the stones ; the varieties 
are numerous. I append a few that I consider good : — 
Cistus Creticus, purple petals, with yellow at the 
base; an established plant of C. crispus, making a 
grand show, petal almost red ; C. ladaniferus has 
white flowers of large size; C. 1 . maculatus, very 
similar, but petals marked at the base with dark 
velvet-like spots ; C. laurifolius, a white flower with 
yellow spots at the base of the petals, is a charming 
flower, so taking in appearance. While all the 
varieties are more or less pretty, in yellow, purple, 
rose, red, chocolate, etc., no garden of any dimension 
should be without some of this genus. 
Stuartia virginica is another rather tall-growing 
shrub not often met with outside, but flowering with 
us just now, and well worthy a place where not too 
much frost is experienced. It should be given a 
sheltered nook where plenty of sun can reach it, and 
assist in ripening its wood. It bears a creamy-white, 
cup-shaped flower, with many stamens of a purple 
hue. 
The double-flowered Deutzia scabra is very pretty 
just now in the background of the shrubbery bor¬ 
der, and so is Leycesteria formosa in a like position. 
The latter requires plenty of room, as it is a strong 
grower, and should be planted in a fairly open posi¬ 
tion, or, I find, the growth made during the summer 
gets badly nipped when severe frost occurs. The 
flowers are produced at the end of the branches in 
long, drooping racemes of white, thickly studded with 
purple, bracts not unlike a spike of Medinilla mag- 
nifica in shape, though not in colour. It is a most 
interesting plant, and not so often met with as it 
deserves. 
Very soon the hardy Fuchsias, corallina and 
Riccartoni will be in full flower, as well as several 
kinds of Hydrangea, whose flowers will carry us 
well into the autumn. I could enumerate many more 
useful flowering shrubs, but am already afraid I have 
taken up too much of your valuable space ; but before 
closing my remarks I would like to mention one 
other good thing in Viburnum plicatum, a beautiful 
white, ball-shaped flower, similar to V. Opulus 
(Guelder Rose), but far prettier. The plant attains 
to 8 ft. or 10 ft., and when well flowered is one mass 
of snowy whiteness. This was at its best about the 
middle of June.— J. Mayne, Bicton, Devon. 
MELVILLE CASTLE IN JULY. 
A run out from Edinburgh to Melville, the seat of 
Viscount Melville, is a very interesting as well as 
pleasing experience. Melville is a charming place 
at any season, but on a bright July day it is perfectly 
paradisaical. The valley of the Esk, in which it lies, 
affords one of the sweetest bits of idyllic seclusion to 
be found in Midlothian. Nature and man never 
conspired so successfully to improve the capabilities 
of any spot, is the involuntary impression borne in 
upon the mind as the eye surveys the scene from 
some wooded eminence like Nancie’s Knowe. 
A peep at the gardens suffices to show that Mel¬ 
ville is still equal to,its past reputation for excellent 
crops, both inside and out. The Peach and Nectarine 
houses present quite a phenomenal picture of which 
a carefully reared article of this kind can become. 
They are simply magnificent in size and finish. The 
same compliment might be paid to the vineries, with 
crops at all stages, late and early, bespeaking 
thorough knowledge of viticulture. There is, too, in 
another part of the range a magnificent crop of 
Apples and Pears in pots, a feature of Melville horti¬ 
culture which deserves appreciative mention. 
Passing out of the houses through the kitchen 
garden—prolific in healthy and heavy growth this 
Clivia miniata superba. 
