April 1, 1899. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
489 
Asparagus medeoloides. — F. L. A.: In case you 
may not recognise your favourite Smilax under the 
new name, we may say that the plant is now admitted 
to be a true Asparagus, and not simply Asparagus- 
like (Asparagoides). Try a pinch of seed, and sow it 
at once. It will give you all the plants you want, 
and the seedlings soon grow. 
Camellia buds Drooping. —Yours is no new plaint, 
but rather a very old one, Tyro, for ever since 
Camellias were first grown people have been grumb¬ 
ling about the buds falling. In your case the loss of 
the buds is undoubtedly due to your having given 
the plants too much heat. Camellias cannot stand 
heat except just when they are making their growth. 
- - 
SEA HOLLY. 
The Sea Holly (Eryngium maritimum) is the only 
truly indigenous species of this genus in the British 
Isles, though E. campestre is more or less naturalised 
near various seaports in the south and west of 
England, and in Ireland. Several hardy exotic 
species are more or less cultivated in gardens, and 
E. giganteum is extensivelj cultivated in some market 
gardens near London, under the name of Ivory 
Thistle. The stems and foliage are cut and dried, 
being used in that state for decorative purposes. The 
rich sea green or glaucous hue of E. maritimum 
would indicate that it might be used for the same 
purpose. In order to meet such a want it might 
very well be cultivated in private gardens at least. 
It might not respond to the cultivator's art so readily 
as E. giganteum, but its more truly perennial 
character, and finer appearance should warrant any 
little trouble that might be necessary in establishing 
it. For ordinary border decoration it is well worthy 
of a place in the garden ; and it would also help 
greatly to make the rockery interesting. While 
allowing plenty of room for its roots to extend down¬ 
wards, the soil in which it is immediately grown 
should be made light and sandy, a condition that 
would prevent stagnant moisture about the roots and 
crown of the plant during winter. In order to pro¬ 
pagate it large crowns might be carefully divided; 
but a quicker and safer method of getting up a stock 
is to sow seeds, which are easily obtainable from 
the usual sources, and by no mean expensive. It 
would be a thousand pities if the plant collector and 
vendor should take to digging up the roots of our 
native plants, or even to cutting down the stems 
wholesale, as that would prevent the seeds from 
ripening and thus favour extermination. The 
accompanying illustration shows the top of a stem 
with its foliage, flowers, and bluish spiny bracts. 
SIDBURY MANOR, DEVON. 
Situated on the side of a glen, a lateral branch of 
the valley of the River Otter, East Devon, and above 
the village of Sidbury, is Sidbury Manor, the beauti¬ 
ful seat of Sir Charles Cave, Bart. The mansion is 
a modern one, of red bricks, with mullions in the 
windows, and other courses of grey oolitic stone. 
There is a balustrade at the top of the eaves, and 
the roof is surmounted by ornamental chimneys. It 
is approached by a drive from Sidbury, through 
fields of fine pasture grass, and overlooks the deer 
park, having a stream and lake at the bottom of the 
valley, at the top of which is a considerable amount 
of wood. 
The Plant Houses. 
We paid the place a visit just after Christmas, when 
everything looked and felt more spring-like than has 
been the case for the last week or two. In the open 
border two dense lines of Schizostylis coccinea were 
in full bloom, the flowers being used for cutting. 
Having found the gardener, Mr. J. L. Reynolds, the 
latter led us into the Fern house, where the plants 
were all neat and trim. Musa Cavendishii is grown 
and fruited in brick boxes in the centre bed of the 
house. Gardenias raised from cuttings last spring 
were in 32-size pots, and they as well as some older 
plants were timed to flower about this time. The 
next house contained Rose Perle des Jardins on the 
roof. Batches of Freesias, Roman Hyacinths, Poly¬ 
anthus Narcissi, and Roses in pots were advancing 
towards the flowering stage. Some double Zonal 
Pelargoniums planted out last spring against the 
back wall in the early vinery for the sake of cut 
flowers are now 3 ft. to 7 ft. high. They were in 
bloom at Christmas, and were expected to keep on 
all the winter. 
The stove contained an assortment of Philoden¬ 
drons, Clerodendron balfourianum, Crotons, 
Dracaenas, &c.; but we were particularly interested 
in Ficus pumila (F. repens of gardens), which 
covered the end wall, and fruits every year. Both 
the juvenile and adult branches are allowed to hang 
down freely in festoons. A shoot had escaped from 
the house beneath a rafter, and climbing up the wall 
and chimney outside now completely covers them. 
The low walls of the house all round the outside and 
on both sides of the end door are also covered with 
both forms of this creeper, which grows as freely as 
Ivy, though planted outside. The foliage outside is 
of a paler green than that inside. The shoots are 
used for decoration in the cut state. The narrow 
borders round the outside of the stove are also 
planted with Belladonna Lilies, which flower 
grandly in autumn. 
A cool house was devoted to flowering stuff such 
as Carnation Miss Joliffe, and Mrs. Leopold de 
Rothschild, Chinese Primulas in variety, Richardias, 
and Cinerarias coming into bloom. A remnant of 
the Chrysanthemums was still flowering in the late 
white Princess Blanche. Very pretty was a batch of 
young plants of Libonia floribunda in bloom. Tbe 
foliage of Jacaranda mimosaefolia was very fine. 
The central bed of another stove was filled with 
Hymenocallis macrostephana, which flowers well in 
its season, the cut bloom being sent to the family 
twice a week when away from home. Gloriosa 
superba was still flowering. The fragrant Pancratium 
fragrans forms a companion to the sweetly scented 
Hymenocallis. Gloxinia maculata grown in some 
quantity was also flowering even at that late period. 
Very highly coloured was the foliage of Acalyphas 
and Crotons. Abutilon schizopetalum, with its 
curiously cut, scarlet flowers, covers nearly the 
whole of the end wall, and being allowed to hang 
down loosely, flowers nearly all the year round, 
under the influence of clear skies and the kindly 
climate of Devon. 
The Orange house contains a batch of young 
fruiting plants of an Orange named Edith, which 
recently received a First-class Certificate from the 
Royal Horticultural Society. The foliage of the 
original plant in a pot was turning yellow, and the 
plant being transferred to a tub the foliage is now of 
a bright green. The handsome orange-scarlet 
flowered Streptosolen Jamesoni, planted out and 
trained to wires, was in full bloom. Pelargoniums 
and Euphorbia fulgens were also flowering, so that 
altogether a considerable and Varied harvest of bloom 
occupied the houses. 
The Pine stove contained a batch of Pineapples in 
pots and consisting chiefly of the Queen variety. 
Cucumbers on the roof carried fine fruits; and the 
back wall of the house was covered with Orange 
trees. Eucharis grandiflora was flowering in pots ; 
and bright colour was afforded by Acalypha macro- 
phylla, A. musaica and A, Sanderi, A Melon house 
Sea Holly (Eryngium maritimum). 
