48 
THE GARDENING WORLD . 
January 17, 1003. 
The Junior’s Page and Correspondence. 
Planting of Persian Ranunculus (A. D. M.).—Some time 
during the next month would be a suitable time for planting this 
class of plants, which are a little troublesome if subjected to tire 
severe and changeable weather of our winter climate by too 
early planting. We have planted the tubers in October and 
November, but they got very much decimated during th© winter. 
The ground intended for them should be prepared in the autumn, 
if in any way of a light and gravelly character, so that it may 
get settled before planting time. Soil of a heavy character should 
be well dug and prepared shortly before you intend to plant. 
Avoid that which is inclined to clay or that which is very wet. 
Do not get on the ground when it is soaked with rain or snow, 
but wait till it is in fairly good condition, to avoid puddling it. 
Break it all up finely as the process of digging is being accom¬ 
plished. Rake it smooth, and take out holes with a trowel, so 
that the tubers will be 2 in. below the surface after putting in 
a little sand. Press the tubers into the soil with their claws 
downwards, making them rest firmly in the soil. Cover them 
with sand, and then fill up the hole' with soil. If they succeed 
well in your soil, the plants should he 4 in. apart each way. 
It will afford a deal of protection if you cover the bed with dry 
straw, and should there he any danger of it blowing about, you 
could tie it together in handfuls of straight straw, making a coarse 
mat, as it were. Leave this on the bed till the weather becomes 
fine or mild in March. 
Hardiness of Scilla peruviana (W. M.).—In all cases where 
we have seen this plant grown it has proved quite hardy, but 
that has been chiefly in the southern counties. We think, how¬ 
ever, it would succeed with you if planted in a light and friable, 
well-di'ained soil. Should you have a number of bulbs, some of 
them may be planted out in the open, and the rest potted up in 
a compost of two-thirds good fibrous loam, one-third leaf mould, 
and sufficient gritty sand to make it porous. These reserve plants 
may be stood in a cold frame till they come into- bloom, when they 
can be transferred to the greenhouse or conservatory or other 
cool house where their deep blue flowers will be acceptable. 
Snake’s Head in the Grass (E. M.).—If you refer to Fritillaria 
Meleagris, which is the proper name of the British plant, then 
you may plant it in the grass with every hope of success, provided 
the soil is of a light and friable nature, or somewhat gravelly, 
such as you would find in a meadow near a stream or river, then 
you may rest assured that the bulbs will grow and multiply if 
left alone. We fear it is getting late for the planting of this 
class of bulb, but if the latter is in good condition you could 
plant at once. Autumn is the best time for planting the Fritil- 
larias; but if you have any fear of them you could plant them 
on this occasion in a border of light, rich soil, to encourage 
growth as much as possible. Next autumn, say in October, you 
could transplant them into the grass. As May and June are 
the months in which they flower, you must be prepared to- accord 
them a. position where the grass can be left uncut till the leaves 
begin to fade. You can overcome the difficulty, however, by 
planting them in groups or clumps of irregular outline, where 
you can cut the grass all round them, leaving it standing only 
where the Fritillarias are situated. 
Wall Shrub and How to Propagate It (A. P. F.).—The 
yellow-flowered wall shrub is Jasminum nudiflorum. It is quite 
customary for it. to flower at this period of the year, but the 
quantity of blossom which it will produce at any given period 
depends very much upon the mildness of the weather for the 
time being. ' Should severe frost supervene when it is in flower, 
the blossoms that are open would most likely get destroyed; but 
the plant is hardy, and any remaining buds would open later 
on after the frost is gone. You should have no* difficulty in 
rearing or rooting any number of young plants If you take 
cuttings of the young wood about 6 in. long and insert them 
firmly in pots of light sandy soil, keeping the pots in a frame 
or greenhouse in winter. Another easy method is to layer some 
of the young shoots in autumn around the old plant, made in 
the same way as you would treat a Carnation. Water the ground 
in which the layers arc placed, if at all dry, till the advent of the 
autumn rains. 
Fuchsia seen at the Sea Coast (Fuchsia.).— The red and 
purple Fuchsia you noted was most likely F. Riccartoni. It 
succeeds best in districts close to the sea. where it attains a con¬ 
siderable height. Farther inland we have seen it destroyed 
during a severe winter, even against a. wall. At the same time 
we have noted it in cottage and farm gardens some distance 
inland, and making a very satisfactory display of blossom, even 
when planted fully exposed in the garden and not given any 
protection whatever. Under such conditions the stems would 
remain dwarf, say for 2 ft. to 3 ft. in height. The tops would 
often get killed in winter, but that made the jffant even more 
densely bushy, and though the flowering shoots were not so 
long as when grown against a wall, they nevertheless made a 
really handsome bush during July, August, and September. 
Apple Tree raised from Seeds (W. D.).— There is a prevalent 
idea that seedlings of Apples will not flower or fruit unless 
they are grafted. That is hardly correct, because if it were so the 
wild Apjrle or Crab would also behave in that peculiar way. 
The facts are that trees raised from seeds take a good many 
years to reach the fruiting stage. When they do so the fruit 
may be worthless and no better than a Crab. On the contrary, 
you may get something good, and even worthy of extended 
culture. A great deal of chance work attaches to the raising of 
Apples from seeds, unless you go about the work in a scientific 
way. That is, you must make a careful cross between two really 
good varieties, and then there is a good deal of chance 
work as to the value of the resultant trees. You can hasten the 
fruiting of your tree by grafting it on another tree that is already 
in a bearing condition, or get someone to do it for you. 
Kohl Rabi and its Use (Quo).—It would be difficult to define 
or describe all the uses to which this is put. A cook in a first- 
class establishment would be able to define the various prepara¬ 
tions to which she subjects it. The most common use to which 
it may be put, however, is to treat it as a vegetable for the 
dinner-table, using much in the same way as Turnips, to which 
it is closely allied. The different varieties of Kohl Rabi are not 
Turnips, however, but merely fleshy-stemmed forms of the Cab¬ 
bage, You may note the difference in the presence of a short 
stem above ground, and that above this the stem swells out in 
globular shape until it assumes the form of a Turnip. Wo 
presume it is cut up in slices or dices — that is, in small squares— 
and used in soups, on the one hand, or merely as a vegetable to 
accompany meat. 
Two Dozen Sweet Peas for Exhibition (T. D. W.) —It would 
be very easy, in fact, more easy, to name four dozen good varie¬ 
ties than two. So much depends upon taste or preference that 
you can only find out which you like best by trying a good 
many fresh ones each year in your garden, retaining those that 
do best and please you most in the matter of colour, form, and 
general behaviour. If you have not yet made the acquaintance 
of named varieties you cannot go far wrong to make a commence¬ 
ment with those named below. Salopian and Firefly are crimson ; 
Prima Donna and Lovely, pink; Prince of Wales and Mrs. 
Dugdale, rose; Gorgeous and Lady Mary Currie, orange; 
Duchess of Sutherland and Modesty, blush; Dorothy Eckforcl 
and Blanche Burpee, white; Little Dorritt and Triumph, of two 
colours; Queen Victoria and Hon. Mrs. Kenyon, yellow ; Navy 
Blue and Countess Cadogan, blue; Othello and Black Knight, 
maroon ; Lady_ Grisel Hamilton and Countess of Radnor, 
lavender ; America, striped red or crimson ; and Lottie Hut-chins, 
a light-coloured fancy variety. 
Culture of the Flame-flowered Nasturtium (J. Herd).—T he 
chief requisites are to keep it cool and moist. A deep, rich soil 
that will retain moisture during the warm and dry periods of 
summer will prove the most suitable. As the roots are of a 
rambling nature you must plant the Nasturtium where it can 
ramble a. bit- into fresh soil and continue to make vigorous 
growth from year to year. The north aspect of a wall, not too 
high nor overhung with trees in any way, would prove most 
suitable for it in your district. Failing such a situation, the 
ground selected should be moist, and the lower part of the’Nas¬ 
turtium shaded by bushes of some sort, so as to keep the 
roots cool. It may be allowed to ramble over some support, even 
if all the upper portion is more or less exposed to- sunshine. 
At the same time, you ,should avoid a wall upon which the sun 
would strike and render it dry and hot. 
Madonna Lilies in Full Growth (L. Gibson).- It is customary 
for (lie White Lily to send up a- tuft- of leaves from each bulb 
after the advent of rain during autumn, and these leaves usually 
remain fresh -till the early part of summer, when they die away as 
the flower stems push up. There is nothing abnormal, then, in 
your Lilies behaving as they have done. You should make a note 
of tins, and remember to lift aiicl transplant them, when neces¬ 
sary, some time before the end of August, because tlien (he bulbs 
will be at rest. _ After young growth has started the roots would 
be liable to injury by transplanting. 
