376 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
February 10, 1900. 
INTS FOR MMATEURS. 
Paeonies.—A very eulogistic reference is made by 
Messrs. Kelway in their “ Manual " to the charms 
and merits of Paeonies. They say—and no growers 
understand more about Paeonies than they— 
“ Herbaceous Paeonies are the most beautiful, the 
noblest, and the grandest of all hardy and perennial 
plants, and should be in every garden, large or 
small; in beds, borders, shrubberies, or drives ; in 
parks, by grass walks, or woodland. They should be 
planted in masses for distant colour effect, in 
straight lines or curving on the margin of shrub¬ 
beries, and in groups between shrubs. They are 
handsome in large and small beds in the midst of 
turf, in borders at the foot of walls, aod in mixed 
borders at constant intervals The less expensive 
kinds should be planted freely in copses, woods, and 
the rougher parts of the garden ; all these situations 
they adorn." 
Anyone who has grown the Paeonies in groups, or 
even singly, cannot but endorse the foregoing lines. 
One'great drawback in my eyes, and a point which 
might be overcome somewhat by culture and selec¬ 
tion, is that they do not last long in bloom, and are 
soon past the heyday of their beauty. Their culture, 
however, is very simple, and they may be planted 
over a period extending from October up to the end 
cf March. A rich soil is very much preferred by 
them, and for mechanical texture a medium loam, 
that is, a soil which drains well, yet is moderately 
heavy. By the addition of leaf soil, road scrSpings, 
and other light material heavy soils can be made 
more suitable. On the other hand, dung and other 
holding matter can be liberally supplied to sandy 
soils, and in planting in such choose a shaded posi¬ 
tion. Staking is necessary to uphold the heavy, 
branching system, and great balls of bloom. A 
summer mulch is another item very much to be re¬ 
membered. Indeed, for the growth of good plants 
we always mulch in April, and again after growth 
has finished, especially on the drier borders where 
the tree varieties are growing. 
Practically these are all the points to which the 
attention of the amateur may be drawn. They enjoy 
almost perfect immunity from insect affliction, so 
that from this cause ihtre comes no worry or 
expense. The ease with which the Paeonies, or at 
least, the old P. officinalis and P. o. rubra plena are 
cultivated is demonstrated by the fact that in the far 
north of Scotland, and away down in Devon, and 
along the south with every shire between, the lord's 
garden and the labourer’s plot shine red year after 
year with plants rigorously undisturbed. The 
newer varieties of Paeonies are quite as easy to deal 
with, and are much improved in many of their most 
des rable points. 
For the benefit of those who care to increase their 
Own stock a word might be dropped. The herbaceous 
Paeonies may be increased by division of bushy 
plants, but do not be too severe in the operation, nor 
repeat it too often. They are also propagated from 
seeds or by grafting pieces of nice shoots (scion) on to 
the fleshy roots of the common red Paeony men¬ 
tioned above. This grafting operation is usually 
performed in August, the healthy roots afterwards 
being severed and planted with the grafted scion into 
frames and kept close for a while. Leave them there 
until the spring, whence plant them out. Propaga¬ 
tion may also be done by layering. 
Tree Paeonies differ from the herbaceous group in 
being shrubby. They form woody growths, and a 
thickened rootstock. They are very serviceable, and 
can be used for north borders where others of the 
Paeony iribe would not thrive. A dry autumn aids 
the next season’s blooming powers of Paeonies. 
Where the crowns or buds start early, and are in 
danger of being nipped by frosts (which does occur, 
more especially among the Moutan or tree varieties) 
a protection of some light sort must be applied. 
Sections ef Paeonies.—There are reckoned to be 
about two dozen species and sub-species of Paeonies, 
but so linked are many of the species that it is a 
difficult matter for any but the most careful specialists 
to distinguish good species and their subsidiaries. 
Mr. Baker, cf Ivew, who has done so much for 
systematic botany, applied himself to the study of 
Paeonies nearly twenty years ago, and he classified 
them into two sections. The first of these is the 
Moutan Tree P es ; the second is the section 
which dies down every autumn, the herbaceous 
Paeonies. A further classification was made by 
making three groups of them according to the 
characters of the follicles or seed carpels. One 
group has hairless follicles, another has follicles 
bearing upright hairs, while the follicles of fhe third 
group bear hairs arranged in star-shaped fashion 
when mature. The names of the species selected by 
him were arranged under the groups to which they 
belonged. Thus, we see that there are two sections, 
a herbaceous P. officinalis and P. albiflora, and a 
shrubby P. Moutan. Among the species belonging 
to the former, differences in hairiness define the 
group to which they belong. The old red Paeony 
represents the hardy European section ; the original 
white species, P. albiflora, represents, as, of course, 
does the old red one, the hardy herbaceous Paeonies. 
P. Moutan is the original Tree species, which is so 
widely cultivated in China and Japan. The varieties 
are suitable for forcing to flower in February. 
Paeonies belong to the same natural order as do 
Buttercups, Celandines, Delphiniums, Aquilegias, 
&c., and members of the family are found in the 
temperate regions of both the Old and the New 
World. So much taste is there in choosing varieties 
that we leave that to the fancier of these plants. 
A Backyard Garden.—A subscriber to the 
Gardening World, who has but lately become en¬ 
dowed with the desire to garden well, and to advance 
the aesthetic role in his little suburban garden, asked 
me to guide him in a selection of suitable plants and 
shrubs for the beautifying of his area. I was able 
to visit his home, and his circumstances are so true 
a prototype of the gardens and the means of so 
many others, whether readers or not, that I prefer to 
offer some general hints, broadly applicable to the 
needs of all in our friends’ status. He is an artisan, 
amateur gardener, living in the out reaches of west 
London, so that his situation for fine gardening is 
not the most preferable. The garden is, roughly, 
only one long border of io ft. to 12 ft. in breadth, 
and surrounded on all sides by walls, that on the 
east side being 10 ft. high, the others about 7 ft. It 
might be thought that such a small yard, with such 
high walls, would be over-shadowed and frequently 
dull, yet, do. The garden lies south-east and so re¬ 
ceives sunshine till late in the afternoon. Well, 
then, my first hint is to have the vacant ground 
deeply dug. He, having been exceedingly generous 
to it for three years past, I advised the addition of no 
further natural manure, but to give a dressing half- 
an-inch all over the surface with unslacked lime. 
Gardens which have been scantily manured should 
be supplied with all the kitchen and room slops, 
weak soapy water, and fertilisers, such as soot, very 
fine coal and wood dust-like ashes, and guanos. On 
light soils, however, make every endeavour to add 
what is called organic matter, which is to be found in 
clean vegetable mould, sea-weed, stable-litter, and 
moss, leaf-soil, and, of course, soppy " muck,” that 
is, farmyard or dairy manure. Heavy soils are 
generally well filled, natural larders, and more 
frequent lime-dressings tend to liberate the goodness 
they hold. And one more point od soils before we 
go onward :—To preserve moisture in the under¬ 
depths of the garden, where the roots of the crops 
are one of the best hints which I or any other 
gardener could give is, never to lay aside your Dutch 
hoe during hot weather. There may be do weeds to 
hoe out ; so much the better then. But, as Rudyard 
Kipling might say, hoe, hoe, hoe,—loosen the surface 
soil and keep it loose; it is a capital system of 
" mulching," and the why and wherefore of all this 
may be found in some of last summer’s " Hints." 
Now to consider a list of cheap, beautiful, and in’ 
ail ways suitable plants for a garden such as I have 
under notice. Say it is devoid of plants, as this one 
nearly is, for clothing the walls and small buildings, 
I should advise the following subjects:—Roses, Gloire 
de Dijon, Felicite Perpetue l’ldeal, Crimson 
Rambler, and Blairii No. 2. These are vigorous and 
very free. 
Shrubby Climbers.—For winter flowering use the 
yellow Jesamine, Jasminum nudiflorum ; then for 
spring the mountain Clematis, C. montana is fine, 
for it throws out wreaths of starry white flowers 
when it does well. The Traveller’s Joy or Old Man's 
Beard, Clematis vitalba, comes in for summer; 
while for July, August, and onward we have the 
large blue-flowered Clematis named Jackmanni, 
which is seen in most gardens, and should be absent 
from none. One of the Apple tribe, Pyrus japonica, 
is a pretty crimson flowering wall plant for a nice 
sunny corner. It flowers in spring-time, but needs to 
be pruned. Wistaria chinensis, like a blue-flowered 
Laburnum, is a capital plant fcr walls and for cover¬ 
ing exposed roofs. Secure good plants to start with. 
Then for soft-wooded climbing plants choose Tro- 
paeolums, the Canary Creeper, and the Flame 
Flower. Packets of seed of the latter can be had for 
a few pence. The Flame Flower likes a somewhat 
shadier position and cool bottom. Any of the wall 
plants may be obtained for 6d., is., and is. 6d. a- 
piece. In small gardens only half-a-dozen good 
Roses need be grown in borders, and these should 
include a little hedge of Rosa rugosa and its forms ; 
China or monthly Roses, and one or two good hybrid 
Perpetuals. The following shrubs are also cheap, 
hardy, vigorous, and sure to give satisfaction, pro¬ 
vided due care is exercised in planting to start with: 
— Cornus mas variegata, a bright leaved and yellow 
flowered shrub; Daphne Mezereum, a sweet- 
scented spring bloomer; Cytisus scoparius, the 
common Broom ; Forsythia viridissima, for a sunny 
corner, yellow sprays ; Diervilla rosea, plant any¬ 
where, very pretty ; Ribes sanguineum or flowering 
Currant; Spiraea prunifolia, graceful, aDd bearing 
white flowers, open position ; Tree Paeonies (see 
"Hints”); Philadelphus coronarius, the Mock 
Orange ; Rhododendron ponticum, perfectly hardy 
and free flowering, prefers peaty soil, but this is n t 
esseDt'al, any position. As a smaller, but very use¬ 
ful plant, Fuchsia Riccartoni should certainly be 
planted. Place it next a sunny wall. More for tie 
loliage effect one might advise Yucca recurvata and 
Y. gloriosa. If these are surrounded at the base by 
trailing Ivy they are very handsome. I find my 
space now too limited, however, to go further in the 
meantime.— Beacon. 
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. 
Lawn Seed for small area— Jos. Gloag: Follow 
out the directions given on page 2t6, and for your 
area (about £ of an acre), 10 lbs. of any good mixture 
would be enough. 
Mushrooms in Barrels.— J. Thompson : If the 
barrels are well cleaned and scrubbed with hot lime- 
water, then aired and sawn in halves, each end may 
very suitably be filled to secure a mushroom crop. 
Thuya orientalis is the true Chinese Arbor Vitae. 
Trinity knows the shrub no doubt, it being of thick 
upright growing habit, not straggliag and so close 
that a good specimen appears like a great verdant, 
baggy column. Quite a number of Cupressus, es¬ 
pecially those which have a fragrance, receive the 
name of Arbor Vitaes. 
Gherkins.— M .: This is the name applied by 
growers to a species of ridge Cucumber. The plants 
fruit late in the season, the produce beiDg small, 
stout, prickly looking green fruits like very stunted 
young Cucumbers. These, and many other very 
acrid and peculiar but health-giviDg vegetables aDd 
salads are more grown by Continental gardeners than 
by our own horticulturists. 
Eucharis Mites Troublesome.— Jas. Nixon : You 
are right; on examination we find the mites have 
destroyed the power in a number of roots, and pene¬ 
trated some of the bulb scales. It is a difficult 
matter to entirely eradicate them. Mix 4 oz. of soft 
soap with half a pint of paraffin oil, and when these 
are blended add just over a gallon of boiling hot 
water. Immerse the bulbs in the water when its 
temperature is at 95 to 100 degrees. Steep them for 
some time, then plunge again. A second steeping and 
hand-wash may be given in a hot lime-water solu¬ 
tion. Pot the bulbs up in fresh loam three parts, 
one part of leaf soil and sand. Do not over-water 
them till they start again in vigour. Allow them 
strong bottom heat. As a preventive we have used 
top-dressings of soot. 
Raising Ferns from Spores.— J. H.: Secure 
thoroughly matured fronds, examine their edges or 
under surface, and if the sori, as the groups of spor- 
