October 31, 1903. 
THE GARDENING WORLD . 
921 
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS. 
The Editor invites enquiries for reply in this column. These 
enquiries may cover any branch of garoenmg. Questions should be 
put as briefly as possible, and written on one side of the paper only ; 
a separate sheet of paper should be used for each question. 
Readers are also invited to give their fellow gardeners the benefit 
o* their experience by sending supplementary replies. 
Replies cannot be sent by post, even if a stamped , addressed 
envelope is enclosed, and the return of specimens cannot be undertaken. 
Anonymous communications are treated in the usual editorial manner . 
Address letters: The Editor, ‘‘The Gardening World,” 37 and 
38, Shoe Lane, London, E.C. 
Twelve Varieties of Vegetables. (H. Jones.) 
Mr. E. Beckett has answered your question on this subject, 
and given the following as the best twelve vegetables for exhi¬ 
bition in August. “ The maximum number of points is, accord¬ 
ing to the R. H. S. ‘ Code of Rules for Judging ’: —Cauliflowers 
7 points, Autumn Giant; Celery 7 points, Standard Bearer ; 
Potatos 7 points, Windsor Castle ; Peas 7 points, Gladstone ; 
Onions 7 points, Ailsa Craig ; Beans, Runner 7 points, Hack- 
wood Success ; Tomatos 7 points, Polegate ; Leeks 6 points, 
Dobbie’s Champion ; Carrots 5 points, New Red Intermediate ; 
Parsnips 5 points, Tender and True ; Beetroot 5 points, Dell’s 
Crimson ; Turnips 5 points, Jersey Lily ; Cucumbers 6 points, 
Ideal ; Globe Artichokes 5 points, Green Globe.” But, in my 
opinion, Carrots should have 7, Leeks 7, Parsnips 6, and 
Cucumbers 5. 
Making a Peach Border. (W. M.) 
In making a new Peach border we think it would be more 
advantageous to do it in sections as the trees grow. For the first 
year 4 ft. wide would be sufficient quantity of new soil. Next 
year add 2 ft., and in the following year another 2 ft., according 
to the width of your border. The advantage of this is that the 
ycung roots have always fresh soil to grow into every year, 
whereas if you made the whole border at once a large portion 
oi the border would be unoccupied with roots for some years, 
and the soil might get bad during that time, and in any case 
the soil would be wasting the fibre in it and losing its pro¬ 
perties without the presence of roots to utilise the same. 
Daisies and Moss in a Lawn. (Northern.) 
The presence of Moss would indicate that the soil is either 
wet or shaded by trees or walls. If such is the case you should 
see that it is properly drained. We do not think it advisable 
to dig down the present turf, because if the conditions are 
favourable Daisies will come up again abundantly, as the soil 
must be full of seeds, while the presence of other Daisies m 
the neighbourhood would soon colonise the ground afresh. A 
very good plan would be to top-di’ess the ground with a good 
mixture of weil-decayed manure, leaf soil, and rich old potting 
soil from underneath the benches. If this was spread on the 
ground before Christmas and roughly raked with a wooden rake, 
the rain would wash in the properties of the manure and thereby 
feeci the roots of the grass. In the springtime any rough mate¬ 
rial and stones could be raked off, after which the ground could 
be rolled, which will level down the top-dressing, making a 
smooth surface for the mowing machine. The lawn might, 
indeed, be well tempered by top-dressing and frequent rolling 
in this way, and provided the soil is properly drained the grass 
should grow so well as to crowd down Daisies and Moss. A 
light top-dressing of nitrate of soda during April, May, and 
June would give a great impetus to the grass and help its 
growth greatly. Some preparations are sold by the sundriesmen 
specially intended to promote the growth of grass, and you 
could use these if you liked them in preference to nitrate of 
soda. It might be worth your while in the meantime to set 
some boys to spud out the worst patches of Daisies. If in these 
operations there should be bare patches, you can make them 
good by sowing grass seed upon them in the early spring. 
Usually where Daisies are numerous it indicates a rather wet 
soil, and in the case of Moss possibly it is both poor and wet, 
or shaded with trees. 
Grape in Unheated House. (M. M’Laren.) 
The specimen of Grapes you sent us was Madresfield Court. 
The berries were wonderfully large and well finished for a 
vinery that is unheated, and would indicate good care in their 
cultivation. Some of the berries were split before we received 
them, but we think that was due to bad packing, as they must 
have received a considerable amount of shaking in passing 
through the post- The variety Reine Olga succeeds well in the 
open air in the neighbourhood of London, in average seasons 
at least, so that we should consider you could grow it as easily 
as Black Hamburgh in an unheated house. The berries are 
moderate in size for a hothouse Grape, but they are considered 
of good quality for a hardy outdoor Grape at least. 
Hardiness of Leycesteria formosa. (F. R.) 
The long hollow stems of this plant keep growing late in the 
season in some parts of the country, -and are liable to be cut 
back, but the stools sprout again freely in the spring, and 
flower and fruit later on. In the warmer parts of the country 
they usually ripen and stand well, even although the soft and 
hcllow tips may partly get cut back. Even in the far north, 
where the plant does get cut back by severe frost, the stools 
do not get killed, so that you may consider it hardy for all 
practical purposes. We should not plant it in cold, wet situa¬ 
tions, but in warm or sheltered situations fuiiy exposed to 
sunshine. Its hardiness will largely depend upon its exposure 
to light and air during summer. 
Michaelmas Daisies for Small Beds. (R. M.) 
There are some fairly dwarf-growing Asters, such as A. 
Amellus and its varieties, as well as A. acris and its forms. A. 
Thompson! is also greatly admired by some growers. These 
pay all be considered rather early-flowering species, at least 
in the warmer parts of the country. You may, however, adopt 
a plan that would render many of the taller-growing sorts suit¬ 
ably dwarf for your purpose. This consists in taking cuttings 
of the young growths during June and July and rooting them in 
pots. After they are thoroughly rooted and hardened off you 
may plant them out, and most of them will be very much dwarfer 
than the ordinary stools growing in the herbaceous borders. 
The trouble of rooting them is relatively a small matter, seeing 
that by that time most of your bedding plants will be already 
planted out in the beds. You will not have the trouble of keep¬ 
ing stock under glass, as the cuttings should be taken from 
plants in the open border. 
Crimson Rambler Rose. (D. W. D.) 
The Crimson Rambler Rose does not succeed well in the south 
when planted against a wall, as it usually gets the red spider 
badly in dry seasons. We thought, however, that it would 
have suited your locality when so planted. We think your idea 
of planting it as a pillar Rose would answer the purpose 
admirably if you can select a position sheltered from the pre¬ 
vailing winds in your locality, which seems to be rather exposed. 
The posts on which you intend to train them should at least 
stand 6 ft. above the ground in order to give the stems of the 
Roses proper length to flower freely. If it were not for the 
wind which you describe as being prevalent, the posts should 
be 8 ft, or 9 ft. above ground, but in your high locality 6 ft. 
would probably be sufficient. The stems may be left with the 
bark on or otherwise, as you think fit. Painted stakes would 
probably last longer and look neater, although not more natural. 
In any case the lower end of the stakes should be painted to 
preserve them from decay. The part just at the surface of the 
ground would be liable to decay the soonest, and that should 
be well painted. As you suggest, the growing of this Rose 
on pillars would not be a success owing to the great exposure. 
That being the case, your principal object should be to select 
a position where the Roses would get some shelter from the 
prevailing winds. Would it not be possible to provide some 
shelter for the garden by planting trees sufficiently far away 
from the garden to break the force of the wind and yet not 
interfere with the garden in any way ? We feel sure that all 
you require is shelter to attain success with this Rose. In 
selecting stakes it would be worth while to choose those of mode¬ 
rate stoutness, and when the Roses aim in full growth the posts 
would be completely hidden. Then it will be quite immaterial 
whether they are painted above ground or not. 
Schizostylis Flowers being Spoiled. (A. G.) 
The only chance of succeeding with this plant in the open air 
would be to plant it at the foot of a south aspect wall, vdiere 
the, plants would be sheltered from the north and east. During 
the' prevalence of such weather as the present we think it im¬ 
possible, however, to get good flowers without providing some 
sort of shelter. If the plants are in an open situation in the 
garden it would benefit them greatly, and possibly induce them 
to open their flowers more freely if you were to place a sash 
over them just sufficiently high to clear the flower stems. 
Another way of sheltering them would, of course, be to place a 
frame over them. There is another way of making them both 
useful and profitable, however, and that is by planting them in 
rich friable soil in the open, so as to induce them to make 
