822 
THE GARDENING WORLD- 
August 28, 1897. 
Hints for ||mateurs. 
Flowers for Winter —Flowers of all sorts are much 
in request during the winter months, more especially 
white flowers, The damp and cold of late autumn 
and winter, alas, too often prove fatal to many, and 
wreaths, crosses and other floral tokens of respect if 
not wholly composed of white flowers, must at least 
contain a large proportion of them. As long as we 
have a winter to look forward to of the stamp that 
is peculiarly British, so long must all the resources 
of the cultivator's skill be brought to bear in order 
that flowers may be obtainable. Science has done 
much for horticulturists, and the grower of to-day is in 
an infinitely better position to grapple with , and over¬ 
come the difficulties of nature than his predecessor 
of some 50 years ago. The small amateur cultivator 
of under-glass plants is to all intents and purposes a 
modern creation ; he could not have existed in the 
good old times which we are all glad are gone. 
Now no one expects that such an one who has only 
a very limited stock of conveniences, and likewise a 
limited share of experience, can possibly have his 
glass-houses, or more often his solitary glass-house, as 
gay in the winter as in the summer, but still much 
may be done by choosing suitable subjects, and by 
carefully feeling the way along as to their treatment. 
Advice in books and papers is all very well,and a prac¬ 
tical man will be able to profit by it, for he will know 
that no rules that may be given for guidance are ever, 
or can ever be absolute, but that he must perforce use 
his discretion in their application to his special needs, 
and in his particular circumstances. On the other 
hand the man of little or no practical knowledge, is 
apt in far too many instances to try and put into 
practice all he reads, forgetting that a difference in 
environments may call for a possible modification, 
The green hand is thus without the helm of prac¬ 
ticality which enables the holder to steer his way 
along with perfect safety and without trouble. 
In spite of this there are plants that will grow 
under almost any ordinary conditions, and these are 
the ones that the man of little experience must first 
invest in. We shall from time to time enumerate a 
few of these. 
Roman Hyacinths.—Bulbs naturally form the 
staple of the plants that may be induced to flower 
in the winter, and of all bulbs Roman Hyacinths 
most readily recommend themselves to the notice of 
the amateur. The present time is most opportune, 
for all supplies of these should be ordered by the 
end of August if possible. M ost nurserymen advise 
their customers by a note in their catalogues that 
orders should be placed with them early. This is 
sound advice, and not a mere advertising dodge as 
many believe it to be. Romans complete their 
growth early, and the first consignments invariably 
contain the soundest and finest bulbs. Not a few 
amateurs fall into the error of thinking that if they 
get their bulbs early and pot them up, that they will 
all come into bloom early and at the same time, and 
as they naturally want the show of bloom to extend 
over a fairly lengthy period they go in for the later 
ones. It matters not, however, how early the bulbs 
are received, they will not commence to flower any 
too early, and the exact period can be regulated with 
the greatest nicety. It takes a great deal to move 
nature at the end of the year, and the slower the 
plants move along, the better will be the quality of 
the blooms when they do make their appearance; 
moreover, they can be kept back as long as necessary 
with the minimum of trouble. The price of the 
bulbs is reasonable enough and well within the reach 
of everyone, so that the question of expense need not 
stand in the way of those who would like to have a 
good batch of plants. 
Pots are the handiest things to grow them in, 
although boxes are frequently utilised by those who 
grow large quantities of bulbs merely for the sake of 
furnishing cut flowers. A potful of Hyacinths is very 
seldom refused by the ladies of the household for the 
decoration of dwelling rooms, and the conservatory 
will look all the brighter for their presence. The 
pots may be of a size to suit the character of the 
bulbs. Thus the larger samples may be placed 
singly in a 48-sized pot, whilst three or four medium¬ 
sized ones will go very well into a 32-sized pot. The 
soil may consist of a mixture of good loam and leaf 
soil in the proportions of two thirds of the former to 
one of the latter. To this should be added a liberal 
sprinkling of sharp river sand. 
Potting itself is an operation that requires a little 
care. To make it too firm would result in distorted 
growth and failure, and to make it not firm enough 
would only be a shade better. The soil therefore, 
must be of medium firmness, the bases of the bulbs 
should be buried, the necks just peeping above the 
surface. 
After potting comes the period of probation, dur¬ 
ing which roots have to be made. The usual plan is 
to cover the pots containing the bulbs deeply with 
ashes or cocoanut fibre refuse, and leave them in 
this condition for five, six or seven weeks. If ashes 
are employed as the covering medium it will be 
advisable to shield the bulbs by inverting over the 
crown of each an empty flower pot. This is a very 
simple expedient, but may prevent a good deal of 
mischief. The amateur should bear in mind that 
the covering itself is not essential except in so far as 
it gives the necessary darkness. Thus, if a dark 
cellar or cupboard is available the covering with 
ashes or fibre may be dispensed with. The great 
objection to cupboards is that they are usually too 
dry, but this does not usually obtain with regard to 
cellars. 
Primula obconioa. — This plant is not unknown to 
fame, but curiously enough it has been brought into 
notoriety chiefly by reason of an evil quality which 
it possesses to some extent, viz., the irritation of the 
skin which follows the handling of the leaves. There 
is no doubt that cuticular irritation is thus caused, 
but it is only a comparatively few people whose 
skins are sensitive to the effects. On the other hand 
the beauty and decorative value of the plant are 
immense, and despite the danger of skin irritation 
entitle it to a place in the greenhouse. The culture 
is exceedingly simple, and this need not deter any¬ 
body from undertaking it. Propagation may be 
easily effected by division of the old plants or by 
seeds. Taking division first of all it will be found 
that this is chiefly useful for getting a continual sup¬ 
ply of flowers. The plants are very free bloomers, 
and as the umbels of lilac flowers come in admirably 
for cutting, it usually pays to split up a few of the 
old plants, and pot the divisions on. The end of 
March or beginning of April is a good time to split 
up the old plants. If kept close for a time the 
divisions soon commence blooming. For flowering 
during the winter months, however, it is the best 
plan to sow seed in spring. It is true that the seed 
germinates rather slowly and irregularly, but a 
sufficiency of plants may generally be obtained from 
a packet. Just now the young seedlings are in small 
60-sized pots, and as they have filled these with 
roots they should be transferred at once into 
their flowering quarters. Either 48- or 32-sized 
pots will answer. The soil should be light and 
rich, and may consist of half loam, and the remain¬ 
ing half of leaf soil and dried cow manure, or horse 
droppings with sand. Pot firmly and keep the 
plants well down in the pots, but do not bury the 
crowns under the soil. Place the plants in a cold 
frame, and keep them close for a day or two. A 
gentle sprinkling with the syringe on fine days will 
be of service. All the flower scapes should be 
picked out as fast as they make their appearance, 
or the plants will be apt to exhaust a good deal of 
their strength to no purpose. If cared for in this 
way strong healthy plants will be obtained, from 
which the grower will reap a rich harvest of bloom. 
— Rex. 
--J-- 
Correspondence. 
Questions asked by amateurs on any subject pertaining 
to gardens or gardening will be answered on this page. 
Anyone may give additional or more explanatory answers 
to questions that have already appeared. Those who desire 
their communications to appear on this page should write 
“ Amateurs' Page ” on the top of their letters. 
Grapes Cracking. — Two Vines of Buckland’s Sweet 
water that are growing in a house, the rest of which 
is filled with Black Hamburghs always have the 
berries cracked. The berries of the Hamburghs do 
not crack with one or two exceptions. Please advise 
me as the best means of dealing with these Vines.— 
B., Northallerton. 
The cracking is caused by an excess of moisture in 
the ground, and you must exercise great care in the 
watering. You may keep that part of the border in 
which the Sweetwaters are growing drier than that 
part devoted to the Hamburghs if possible. You 
must also allow a moderate extension of the laterals, 
which we assume have hitherto been closely stopped 
in accordance with the usual custom, By allowing 
these growths to develop the extra foliage will form a 
safety valve as it were, and will take part of the 
moisture that is now running to the berries and 
causing them to crack. 
Grape Muscat Hamburgh .—B , Northallerton: 
This variety may be grown in the same house as 
Black Hamburgh it desired, but the colour of the 
berries may not always be good, as they want rather 
more heat than those of the black variety to finish 
well. 
Lifting Richardias — Lancaster planted some 
Richardias out in an open border at the end of June, 
and wishes to know when it will be time to lift them. 
The plants may stay out of doors until frost makes 
its appearance. As we are not safe from the visita¬ 
tion of frost after about the middle of September the 
plants should be lifted then. 
Bulbs.—Mere size does not indicate a good 
Hyacinth bulb, Reader, for weight and degree of 
ripeness are much more important. If you have the 
opportunity of choosing, select well-ripened medium 
sized bulbs of good weight and depth in preferenc 
to large coarse and shallower ones. 
Yegetables for Exhibition. — Rasp : For the 
second week in September you should have no diffi¬ 
culty in staging nine kinds of vegetables. We may 
suggest the following ;—Potatos, Runner Beans, 
Cauliflowers, Vegetable Marrows, Tomatos, Celery, 
Onions, Carrots, and Turnips. A dish of late Peas 
would, of course, be valuable if you have them in 
good condition, and a few good close heads of 
Cabbage would do better, say than poor Celery. In 
a small collection such as this we should not advise 
you to include both Runner and Dwarf French 
Beans. 
Carnations .—Athos : According to the florist’s 
ideas of floral symmetry the fringing of the petals as 
seen in that charming variety, Waterwitch, is a 
defect, and must of necessity count against it when 
shown against varieties that do not display the 
fringing. 
Chrysanthemums.— Athos ; The stunted or de¬ 
formed points of the growths in your Chrysanthe¬ 
mums are probably due to insect attack. Dust the 
points with Tobacco powder, leave it on for an hour 
and then syringe or otherwise wash it out with clear 
water. 
Spidery Chrysanthemums.— W. Monson : An 
article on Spidery Chrysanthemums appeared in our 
issue for November 7th, 1896. In addition to the 
three varieties there mentioned, Golden Thread, 
Centaurea, and Mrs. James Carter are well worth 
growing. The thread-like florets of this section of 
the Autumn Queen is a distinct break away from the 
others. 
Azalea leaves Falling. — T. C. : Thripsare a great 
plague to Azaleas, and in your case they are pro¬ 
bably the cause of the leaves of your plants falling, 
assisted most likely by a little neglect with regard to 
water. With such fine-rooted things as Azaleas it 
is exceedingly dangerous to let them get dry at any 
time. Syringe the plants well with a strong dose of 
Nicotine Soap, and wash off with clear water. Sub¬ 
sequently you must keep the plants well syringed. 
Strawberries.— J. Owen: You are very late in 
potting up the lajers. which should have been in 
their fruiting pots fully a month ago. Lose no time 
in seeing to them. Soot may be mixed with the soil 
at the rate of a forty-eight potful of the former to a 
bushel of the latter. British Queen is of no value 
for early forcing, but will yield a good return if 
allowed to come on slowly in a Peach or orchard 
house. 
Zonal Pelargonium Cuttings.—It is not too soon 
to take cuttings of bedding Pelargoniums, W.B , so you 
may start as soon as you like. Many people do not 
commence cutting the plants about until the last 
moment, because naturally enough they do not care 
