January IT, 1903. 
the gardening world 
a 
THE WILD GARDEN. 
The Giant Cow Parsnip. 
(Heracleum eillosum.) 
Neither in the 'herbaceous borders proper, nor in the better 
dressed parts of the flower garden, should this gigantic herb 
find a place. The wild garden is the best place for it ; but 
those who take proper delight in herbaceous plants and their 
various uses will find an appropriate place for it in the shrub¬ 
beries or pleasure-grounds, where no provision has been made 
for a wild garden proper. 
Many gardeners have had experience with it at one time or 
other, but many of them have had a troublesome experience 
with it, due either to their being unacquainted with its habit 
when it first came under their care, or to their happy-go-lucky 
method of leaving it to its own resources. Possibly, when we 
Heracleum villosum. 
admit that its better knotvn garden name is H. giganteum, 
many will remember that it is a rampant-growing and not very 
sweet-smelling herb that takes up a great deal of space, grows 
to a great height, and in the autumn scatters its seeds all over 
the place, and proves a most troublesome weed. 
All that we admit when it is allowed to plant its® and to 
produce seed in positions where it has no business to be. 
Wherever there are hedges in the vicinity of a flowering and 
fruiting plant, seedlings will be sure to spring up next season. 
This it may do on the borders of the kitchen or flower garden, 
and, though it may never succeed in gaining a footing in 
ground that is annually trenched or dug, yet seedlings are sure 
to establish themselves in the hedges, and, if allowed to flower 
and fruit, which they will do in the second season from seed, a 
Weedy profusion of seedlings will come up all over the ground 
the folloSvmg year All the trouble of weeding which this 
necessitates may be avoided by preventing the production of 
seed, provided the gardener has no need for it. 
As above stated, the wild garden or pleasure-ground is the 
best place for it, and fine effects can be produced by growing 
the plant singly or in groups, either fully exposed on the grass 
or amongst shrub®. Ahgorous plants readily grow to a height 
of 10 ft. to 12 ft. or more, when grown under favourable con¬ 
ditions. It is not at all particular as to the nature of the soil, 
provided it is fairly deep, rich, and open, so as to encourage 
deep rooting, ample foliage, and tall stems. The bigger it is the 
finer; in fact, it can never be too strong or coarse. Its chief 
beauty lies in its coarseness or rugged and picturesque 
character. 
With tills object in view the soil should be prepared for it 
by dee}} trenching, much in the same way as one would prepare 
for Parsnips, to which the Cow Parsnips are very closely allied. 
In manuring the ground the cultivator need have no fear of 
spoiling the roots, as in the case of the garden Parsnip, because 
vigorous growth alone is the object in view in this case. When 
grown in shrubbery the effect of the giant flower stems only is 
obtained. 
If special preparations are made for vigorous growth, how¬ 
ever, we should advocate the culture of this plant in beds upon 
the grass, where an uninterrupted vielw of it would be obtained 
from various parts of the garden or grounds. A situation 
sheltered from the prevailing gales should be chosen, and no 
staking or other support will be necessary. During the first 
year of planting the foliage alone may be prominent, but by 
the second year both leaves and flower stems will make con¬ 
spicuous objects in the landscape, which, once seen, cannot soon 
be forgotten. See our illustration of a fruiting plant. 
The Colton Thistle. 
(Onopordon Acanthium.) 
In a wild state, and when left to its own resources, this 
Thistle prefers dry and waste places, possibly because, in a 
state of semi-starvation, it is able to maintain itself, simply 
because it can, under such circumstances, produce and ripen 
a sufficient number of seeds to continue the succession from 
year to year. Those who have been fortunate in finding it in 
a really wild state will have noticed that a number of plants 
Imiu only a tuft or crown of leaves, while a few straggling 
specimens may be in bloom. This really represents the two 
stages or periods in the life history of the plant, for it is a 
biennial. The flowering specimens on dry, gravelly, or chalky 
ground may only range from 2 ft. to 3 ft. in height; but that 
does not at all represent the capabilities of the plant when 
grown under more favourable conditions. 
Those who would see it in its best and most rugged grandeur 
should prepare a position for it in the pleasure-grounds or wild 
garden, where its seeds will not prove a nuisance, even if they 
ripen in quantity, which they will do, even in northern localities, 
it the plant is placed under favourable conditions, so’ that it 
can make vigorous growth the first year and commence flower¬ 
ing by July in the second summer. As the object should be to 
allow the plant to remain intact for the longest possible period, 
it may he that the seeds will get scattered about by the wind 
before the owner or gardener thinks of gathering the same. 
Where most of the ground is covered with rough grass, or even 
closely-cut sward, no fear need be entertained that it will give 
much trouble. 
With the intention of rearing plants 5 ft. to 9 ft. high, a 
place must be prepared for it by trenching the ground at least 
2 ft. deep, and ameliorating the. soil if the natural material is 
unsuitable. The Cotton Thistle is by no means fastidious as 
to soil, provided it is friable and well drained. On the other 
band, a heavy, clay soil may be improved by removing a 
portion of the subsoil and making the deficit good by the 
addition of old potting-bench soil, leaf-mould, road-grit, and 
other material which may come handy. There are those who 
would consider such, a proceeding altogether beyond the re¬ 
quirements or the merits of the case. Nevertheless, the larger 
the plant the more interesting it becomes ; and even those who 
have-little to say-in favour of a Thistle are often struck by the 
remarkable dimensions of this one when liberally treated and 
given plenty of space to develop. J. Mol. 
