July 2z, 1S05. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
581 
esitate to add a little lumpy peat ; we are 
bliaed to do this, as ours is very light, the 
bre° quickly decaying. Shade the plant 
i(r htly for five hours or so daily, and dew the 
bint overhead when closing about 3.30 p m., 
nd see that no plant gets too much or too 
[it tie water at the root, feeding those that 
lave swelling fruits until such begin to 
olour. _ 
OUTDOOR. 
Vines. — Where these can be advanta-. 
Uously grown it is most interesting work, 
ind no mean sight to see well-ripened bunches 
bn ail outside wall. But to have the best 
results the Vines must have due attention in 
ihe matter of stopping the bearing lateral one 
or two leaves above the bunch, and securing 
the same to the trellis, cutting out superfluous 
growth likely to unduly shade the fruiting 
ones, and removing the point of all sub- 
laterals at the first leaf. Thin the berries in 
‘good time, and supply manurial waterings 
as soon as stoning is over, syringing with 
clear water overhead in the evening should 
red spider appear, and on the other hand dust 
with flowers of sulphur should mildew put in 
an appearance; the border, too, should be 
occasionally pricked up with the fork and a 
mulch applied. 
General Advice. —The frequent showers a 
few weeks back gave a stimulus to the weeds 
among fruit quarters ; these should be cut up 
with the flat lioe ; in fact, keeping the sur¬ 
face ground frequently stirred during summer 
and early autumn is one of the best aids to 
either fruit or vegetable growth ; it also pre¬ 
vents the ground from cracking, and most 
cf us know the evil results therefrom when 
rain comes. Although I had said a word as to 
the frequent showers, do not be led astray 
and think fruit-tree borders are all serene, 
but test the same , every week, and apply a 
thorough good watering when in need of such. 
See that fruit trees in general do not fall a 
prey to insect life, but spray with an insecti¬ 
cide as a preventive rather than a cure, and 
keep a sharp look out for wasp nests ; these 
are rather plentiful in this locality, and either 
pour cyanide of potassium or ordinary tar 
into their holes ; the latter need to be used 
at night, when all the family are at home. 
James Mayne. 
Bicton Gardens, Devonshire. 
Hardy Herbaceous Border. 
Violas. —These are now producing large 
quantities of bloom, and make a delightful 
show when arranged in the separate colours. 
The longest shoots should be kept pegged 
down to cover the ground as required, and all 
the old flowers picked off, so that seed pods 
are not formed, or the flowering period will 
be considerably shortened. If one can apply 
weak doses of manure water occasionally this 
will greatly benefit the plants, but throughout 
dry weather copious supplies of water must be 
'iven. 
Lifting Bulbs. —Now that the foliage has 
»ecome quite yellow these can be taken up 
vithout delay. It is advisable to lift one 
ort at the time and correctly label the bulbs, 
torinc away on shelves or in boxes separately, 
l0 that no confusion may exist when the 
ilanting-out time comes. Care should be 
aken not to injure the bulbs when hfting. 
Alien these are grown in patches m the 
xirders the other plants generally fill up the 
aiac.es but if this is not the case something 
should be planted so that no gaps occur. 
Meconopsis Wallichii.— This is one of the 
landsomest plants in flower at the present 
time, and, though only a biennial, is well 
worthy of inclusion in the best collections. 
It is not difficult to grow as many suppose, 
and if planted in a partially shaded posi¬ 
tion in sandy loam it will not fail 
to give a good spike of large blue flowers the 
second year after planting. The foliage and 
stem are also very handsome, being deeply 
laciniated and completely clothed with long 
hairs, yellowish brown in colour, which give 
to the plant a very characteristic appearance. 
It grows nearly 4ft. in height, and can be 
easily perpetuated by sowing the seeds in 
warmth as soon as ripe. A. E. T. 
Hardy Trees and Shrubs. 
Retinisporas. — There are now a large 
variety of these possessing many charming 
shades of colour seldom seen in other Conifers, 
-\ 
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_ y 
most of which are admirably adapted either 
for mixed shrubberies or the rock garden; 
but to see these at their best an annual 
pruning or clipping during the present month 
is necessary, otherwise they have a tendency 
to become bony and unsightly, and by cutting 
them well in at this season there is sufficient 
time for them to make a new growth before 
the autumn, thus rendering them most con¬ 
spicuous all through the winter and spring 
months. R. squarrosa especially, with its fine 
grey tone of colour, is unquestionably one of 
the best. R. plumosa and plumosa aurea are 
also excellent when treated in this way. 
Styrax .japonica. —After several attempts 
we have at last been successful in establishing 
a fine plant of this delightful shrub, which has 
flowered most profusely during the past three 
weeks. Among very many choice things 
which we are indebted to the Japanese for, 
this without doubt is one of the very best, 
producing its pure white flowers in great 
abundance, somewhat resembling but much 
superior in every way to what is known as the 
Snowdrop Tree (Halesia tetraptera). This 
should be planted in an elevated, fairly dry 
position in a sheltered spot, and until it gets 
about four or five feet in height should be 
slightly protected during severe weather, after 
which it appears to be quite able to take care 
of itself. 
Cornus Kousa.--A most distinct form of 
this large family, the flowers being quite dis¬ 
tinct from any other I am acquainted with, 
somewhat resembling a Clematis montana 
when fully expanded. It is now flowering 
with us for the first time. This is a slow 
grower, and requires also to be planted on a 
somewhat high and dry position which is well 
drained. Some flowering branches shown by 
Messrs. J. Veitch and Sons, of Chelsea, at¬ 
tracted much attention at one of the R.H.S. 
fortnightly meetings. 
A. E. Thatcher. 
Aklenham House Gardens, Elstree. 
The Rose’s Great Enemy. 
The Queen of Flowers has a great enemy, 
and its name is Green Fly. The appearance 
of the tender leaves and young hods sychro- 
nises with the arrival of the green pest, whose 
sole object and purpose is to suck and drain 
the life-sapi of the plants.. Although these in¬ 
sects are easily killed, prevention is better 
than cure, and the method adopted by those 
who grow Roses for market is to start fumi¬ 
gating at the very first sign of the fly, or 
even before the first sign, for they never dis¬ 
appoint the horticulturist by any disinclina¬ 
tion to commence operations. What are 
known as M'Dougall’s insecticide sheets never 
fail to effect a riddance of the plague. These 
should be suspended in the house, and, when 
the foliage is quite dry, ignited at one end, 
and allowed to smoulder, doors and ventila¬ 
tors being then closed. Mr. Green Fly can¬ 
not escape the deadly fumes, and will quickly 
pass into that .sleep from which there is no 
awakening. 
Open-air plants will, of course, require 
different treatment. There are Several excel¬ 
lent insecticides on the market, but than a 
good home-made insecticide nothing is more 
efficacious. A capital one is made of one- 
fourth of a pint of paraffin oil and one ounce 
of soft soap added to a gallon of water. 
Sprinkle the Rose leaves and buds with this 
in the evening, and on the following morning 
syringe or wash the plant. This will give 
Green Fly the happy despatch, and keep the 
plants clean and vigorous. It should not be 
forgotten that over-dryness at the root is cal¬ 
culated to favour insects on the leaves. 
E. W. C. 
-•- 
England’s Largest Walnut Orchard.— 
The biggest Walnut orchard in England is in 
a large village on the outskirts of Bedford. 
It was planted with 365 trees over seventy 
years ago on 20 acres of land. Some of the 
trees have yielded 20,000 nuts, worth, at 
wholesale price, 3s. 6d. per 1,000. 
* * 
Insects and Flowers. —Recent experiments 
made in Belgium by Plateau tend to throw 
doubt upon the truth of the assumption that 
insects are guided to flowers by the brightness 
nf their colours. Plateau’s conclusion is that 
they are guided more by their sense of smell 
than their perception of the bright colours. 
