July 18, 1901. 
735 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
autumn Having finished flowering in the spring, 
take off the tops to excite growths from the bottom 
to make plants for the following season. There is 
also a white variety, viz., Caledonia.— Wargraveian. 
• I» - 
SOUVENIR DE LA MALMAISON 
CARNATIONS. 
To secure good plants of these before the autumn, 
layering should be done as soon as flowering is over. 
Select the strongest plants, and thin out the weak 
growths, at the same time removing the lower leaves 
from the ones intended to be layered, and stand 
them outdoors for a few days to get hardened. In 
most gardens it is the practice to layer them in 
frames, but we have obtained far better results from 
the following mode of treatment: Select a piece of 
ground, any position will suit them, providing it is 
in partial shade; turn the plants out of the pots, and 
plunge them sideways to such a depth that they are 
low enough to be tongued in the usual way, place a 
little mound of soil consisting of two parts loam one 
part leaf mould, round each plant, making each 
layer firm with a strong peg as the work proceeds. 
The old plants should be well watered before turning 
them out of the pots, and water with a fine rose can 
after the layering is done. Syringe them frequently ; 
and never let them get dry at the roots. In a month 
or six weeks you will have fine sturdy plants, large 
enough to be potted into 5-in. pots Walter Hopkins, 
Leighton, Westbury, Wilts. 
A MONTH OF PLEASURE. 
July is more or less a month of rest and pleasure to 
the horticultural world for most of the hard work 
has been completed and the labour of the winter and 
spring deserves to be rewarded with rich and refresh¬ 
ing results. The flower garden is looking its best, 
the Rose border is most glorious, and the soft green, 
velvety lawns are thanking Nature for the recent 
rains. The herbaceous borders are presenting a 
grand and stately appearance, while the Carnation 
beds are just revealing their glory to the world and 
clusters of sweetly-scented Peas are displaying shades 
from the purest white to the deepest scarlet. And 
all this out of door splendour will be rendered more 
exquisite if the sunny weather prevails. The con¬ 
servatory, too, is magnificent with its Liliums looming 
from banks of Spiraea, and the lovely-coloured 
Gloxinias, proudly peeping above delicate carpets of 
Maidenhair Ferns; and everywhere are arranged 
Balsams, Fuchsias, Campanulas, tuberous Begonias 
and Palms, while hanging from the rafters are 
baskets of Asparagus, Fern or Davallias twisted into 
all manner of curious shapes. Who now caD, after 
seeing the glories of Nature in full swing, dare to 
despise the sunny days of July, which will be 
followed by weird autumn tints ?— G. W. Dickson, 
107, Belsize Road, W. Hampstead, N. W. 
ANTHROPODIUM CIRRATUM. 
This plant belongs to the Lily family, is an her¬ 
baceous perennial and resembles Chlorophytum in 
habit, requirements and foliage. The leaves are 
about 2 ft. in length and 2 in. broad, and the flowers 
to the number of sixty or seventy are borne on a 
panicled inflorescence about 2 ft. high. The indi¬ 
vidual flowers are about 1 in. in diameter, the petals 
are pure white, with stamens delicately tinted with 
pink and yellow. It will now have finished flowering 
(It is at its best in June), and if grown in pots these 
should now be placed outside in a sheltered position, 
or in a spare frame if possible without lights and 
plunged in ashes; previously potting all those which 
require it. It should have a free allowance of water 
and should be syringed freely, which will keep down 
green fly, about the only pest which troubles this 
plant. It is easily propagated by seeds which it 
produces freely, or by division which is the best 
method. The old plants should be split up after 
flowering, and each growth potted in a 4-in. pot, 
using a light mixture of loam, leaf-mould and sand. 
They should be kept close for a few weeks until 
established, when they could be placed with the 
rest of the stock, bringing them to the shelter of the 
greenhouse in the autumn as they are not at all 
hardy.— F. W. M. 
Sixty Three Per Cent, of the surface of Spain 
is wild and barren land. 
THE PLANT HOUSES. 
This is generally a dull time under glass; there is 
so much to be seen to outdoors, that the plants that 
delight the eye in the winter are now almost for¬ 
gotten. Although they are overlooked by many 
sightseers they must by no means be so treated by 
their attendants, for it is now that many plants are 
busy building up sound shoots to bear the blooms in 
the dull season, and need a large amount of skilful 
attention. 
Gloxinias.— Probably no flower from the stove 
has been more popular during the past few months 
than this handsome free-flowering Gesnerad. It is 
a flower that has been wonderfully altered by the 
skill of the florist since it was first introduced from 
South America. The original form, Gloxinia speci- 
osa, had a deflexed tube, which considerably handi¬ 
capped the flower from showing theexquisite marking 
and harmony of colours in its throat. The race of 
plants with the erect tube originated in a garden 
sport which showed that characteristic. The en¬ 
deavours to perpetuate this feature were successful 
and the result is the remarkable forms which have 
been gracing shows throughout the country for the 
past few years. A great mistake is often made by 
drying them off too rapidly, which inevitably injures 
the corros. So long as there is any vitality left in 
the leaves the soil must not be allowed to get dry or 
the corm is very liable to be attacked by the destruc¬ 
tive dry rot. Many people rely on seed for increas¬ 
ing their stock, but this is very risky when it is 
desired to keep them true. A far better way is to 
make leaf cuttings. There are not many plants 
which lend themselves to this method of propaga¬ 
tion more readily than the Gloxinia family does. 
Some people prefer to use the whole leaf and a small 
piece of the stalk with it, but when the stalk is 
allowed to remain they are most liable to rot. All 
they require is that the main ribs should be cut 
three-parts of the way through and the leaf pegged 
down firmly on compost of light, sandy soil and 
placed in a warm, but not too moist atmosphere. A 
plan resorted to in establishments where a large 
stock is required is to cut the oldest and firmest 
leaves into sections about 1 in square and then 
insert them as cuttings in shallow pans. They 
should be dibbled into about half way. They strike 
very freely in this way, if care is taken in their pre¬ 
paration and they are not kept too wet. By starting 
them in successive batches, a succession of bloom 
may be obtained throughout the summer, especially 
if they are transferred to a cool house to finish their 
blooming, and the old blooms are cut off as soon as 
they are past their best. They are helped consider¬ 
ably during their flowering period by an occasional 
application of manure water made from sheep drop¬ 
pings. It should not be too strong and should be 
continued for some time after flowering to help to 
make a good corm. 
Achimenes.— A good companion to the handsome 
Gloxinias is this closely allied genus. Those who 
started their plants early have now a good show of 
bloom if they have been careful in their manage¬ 
ment. To get them in flower now they should not 
be started later than the end of February. They 
are best started in pans of very light soil, and then 
transplanted into whatever they are to be grown. 
Nowhere can they be seen to better advantage than 
when in baskets. Some should be encouraged to 
grow through the bottom, and with those that haDg 
over the sides a pretty picture is made, which will 
last for many weeks and come in very useful towards 
the end of the summer when there is often a lack of 
flowering stuff. They are very susceptible to the 
attacks of red spider, and must be frequently 
syringed, for if once it gets a hold on them it is 
almost impossible to eradicate it. Like the 
Gloxinias, they may be kept much longer in bloom 
by transferring them to a cool conservatory where 
they will get plenty of air and protection from direct 
sunshine. They should be fed both during the time 
they are in bloom and for some time after, until 
they show signs of going to rest, when they should 
be allowed to die down naturally, but by no means 
try to force them to die down or next year’s crop of 
bloom will be forfeited. 
Azaleas.— These should all have finished their 
growth by now, and will be greatly assisted in the 
ripening of it and the setting of their buds if they are 
placed outdoors in a sheltered position, but one 
which is fully exposed to the sun. Many people 
make a great mistake when their plants are outside 
by neglecting to syringe them, especially if it Is 
showery weather. Red spider is not much affected 
by rain, as it generally selects the underside of the 
leaves, and thus when rain is allowed to take the 
place of the syringe they can multiply without inter¬ 
ference. When they are syringed they are often 
only wetted over head; what is required is a 
thorough,close, upward syringing with the nozzle on. 
Camellias.— Those plants which are of such 
dimensions as will allow of their being moved will 
ripen their wood much better if placed outdoors for 
a month or two now. Even if they are some trouble 
to shift, the result on the plants’ constitution will 
amply repay the labour, for they will not be so 
likely to drop their buds, a habit they have when 
the wood is insufficiently ripened. Manure water 
should be given at intervals, but it must be very 
clear, so that it does not clog the soil, as Camellias 
do not like to be repotted too often. 
Propagation.— Now that the propagation cases 
are somewhat empty, such plants as Codiaeums, 
Dracaenas, &c , may be readily struck in light soil 
without any trouble.— C. 
fiardp fruit Garden, 
One of the chief things that seems to be occupy¬ 
ing the spate time of the gardener is the summer 
pruning of fruit trees. Where disbudding has been 
carefully carried out there is not so much need for 
the knife and shears, but where the growth is in the 
least inclined to be crowded the superfluous shoots 
should be shortened back to about six leaves. This 
will leave more space for the useful wood to develop 
and allow the air and light to penetrate to it to 
ripen it. If it is not thoroughly ripened it cannot 
be expected to bear very much fruit. Wherever the 
fruit is hid by the foliage it should be exposed by 
either tying back the foliage, or if it will allow it, 
cut it out altogether. There is not much need to 
thin crops in many parts of the country, but 
where the trees are over-loaded it should be carried 
out. 
Pears, When summer pruning of these is started 
care must be taken not to cut them in too close as 
the buds will push into growth and thus destroy the 
prospects of next season's fruit. They should never 
be cut in closer than to six or eight leaves, the spur 
may then be shortened in the winter. 
Plums. — Disbudding should always be practised 
as far as possible as no fruit tree in the garden is 
moreimpatient of the knife than what the Plum is. 
If cut about much it often has a tendency to gum, or 
if checked too much it has a nasty habit of disposing 
of its surplus sap by forming root suckers. Many 
trees are benefited by applicatio ns of liquid manure 
during the growing season, but this must be used 
very judiciously where Plums are concerned as they 
soon run away into vigorous sappy growth, which is 
an undesirable feature in all trees, whether they be 
fruit or ornamental specimens. When they are 
planted against a wall they are more liable to make 
these rank growths than when planted in the open. 
The only remedy is to check their progress and 
endeavour to distribute the sap more evenly. Those 
shoots which it is intended to retain on the tree 
should be carefully fixed in their positions as they 
grow, for if left for any length of time they are sure 
to grow away from the wall and will be difficult to 
bring back again without injuring them. 
Peaches.— The growths which are left on Peach 
trees are often too numerous to tie or nail in individu¬ 
ally ; when this is the case they may be fixed 
securely and neatly in their positions by pieces of 
thin Willow about 1 ft. long, or by pieces of 
Philadeiphus. These should be put across from 
branch to branch of the secured ones and thus hold 
the youDg shoots in position under them. It is a 
very simple process, and when the tree is taken 
down and pruned in the spring they will be found 
much more handy to deal with than what nails and 
shreds would be, and as economy is always a 
recommendation they will be found much cheaper 
and quicker than nailing.— F.J. 
-—- 
Twenty-Three Per Cent, of British farms are 
below five acres in extent. Less than one per cent 
are over 500 acres 
