862 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
November 11, 1905. 
OUR . . . 
Northern Gardens. 
Hardy Herbaceous Border. 
Phloxes. —The early and late flowering sec¬ 
tions cf these among the most beautiful of 
all border plants, and should always be repre¬ 
sented by a selection of the best. Although 
easily grown, they are plants which amply 
repay the cultivator for any extra trouble lie 
bestows on them, and though they will succeed 
for a long period in the same position, it is 
advisable to divide tliem at least eveiy tliiid 
year and replant, otherwise the root stock 
becomes hard and woody and the plants lose 
their vigour. This can be done now or in 
early spring as circumstances permit, but with 
many the present is the most suitable time. 
After the plants are lifted the ground should 
be thoroughly turned over and a liberal addi¬ 
tion of decayed manure mixed with it, and 
when dividing the clumps select young pieces 
which have not flowered. Plant very firmly, 
and if possible give a good top-dressing of any 
suitable material that can be spared. 
Lobelias.- —These have now finished flower¬ 
ing and can be lifted and placed in their 
winter quarters, a suitable position being a 
cold frame or cool Peach case. Pots or boxes 
can be used, but in either case these should 
be well drained, and a suitable soil will consist 
of loam and decayed leaves in equal propor¬ 
tions, with a liberal addition of sharp sand. 
The stems should only be partially cut down 
at first, so as to enable them to dry oft 
properly, removing the remainder when it has 
become brown. If it is desired to increase the 
stock of any of the varieties, the young 
orowths, which are to be seen in quantity 
springing up from the old stem, can be Taken 
off and placed singly in 60 pots, and given a 
similar position as advised above for the 
winter. These Lobelias are, of course, suffi¬ 
ciently hardy to withstand the winter if it is 
mild in the open border, but it is much safer 
and far better results are obtained by lifting 
and treating in the way I have advised. 
-♦- 
Loss Due to the Currant Mite. —The Black 
Currant plantations have been suffering great 
damage all over Kent owing to the depreda- 
tions of the Black Currant mite, also known, 
as the Currant Gall Mite and Phytoptus 
Ribis. The “Daily Mail” says that English 
cultivators have lost £250,000, the value of 
10,000 tons of Black Currants, owing to the 
ravages of the mite. We shall have Black 
Currant jam and jelly all the same, but the 
fruits have been supplied us by French and 
German growers. Our contemporary thinks 
that no foreign-grown fruit can approach the 
flavour and richness of the real English-grown 
Black Currant. The mites are microscopic 
in size and can just barely be discerned by a 
very keen eye, especially when present m 
numbers. The evil they do consists in suck¬ 
ing the juices of the young leaves, while yet 
in the bud state, and this has the effect of 
setting up an irritation in the leaves whereby 
the pods grow to three or four times their 
natural size, but yet never expand at all if 
very badly damaged. 
* * * 
Ax Apple to be seen in two or three collec¬ 
tions at the recent British fruit show of the 
R.H.S. is a new variety raised from the delici¬ 
ous Cox’s Orange Pippin and Peasgood’s Non¬ 
such. It will probably take a high place 
amongst the dessert Apples of the future. 
The fruit is of even, roundish shape, prettily 
coloured, and very pleasant to eat, and was 
raised by a gardener, a Mr. Ross, who has 
also given to the world several Apples of 
promise. 
The Kitchen Garden. 
No better time than the present could be 
found for taking notes of the failures and 
successes of the past season. It is also a good 
practice to form plans for next season s crop¬ 
ping of the kitchen garden. It isi a great 
saving of time if we have notes' of the exact 
positions the various crops are to occupy next 
year when we go to 1 prepare the ground. This) 
is all the more needful when we bear in mind 
that different crops require varying quantities 
of manure. We cannot, therefore, afford to 
be careless in the manner of applying these 
manures, and if ©very yard of the garden is 
prepared in accordance with the needs of the 
crop it is to carry, we are more certain of 
good results than if we relied on the slipshod) 
method of leaving the planning till tire time) 
of cropping has arrived. We can also at this 
slack season note any variety that has been, 
specially good, or, on the other hand, singlei 
out others that have proved unsuitable. All 
these little things, if attended to when we 
have leisure, ensure the saving of a lot‘ of 
worry later on. 
Routine Work.— Push on the manuring, 
digging, and trenching as tlie weather per¬ 
mits, remembering that the more forward we 
can have the rougher and harder of the work, 
the more time we will have in spring to> give 
all planting, seed-sowing, and such work the 
very best car© and attention. We are also, 
when the work is well in hand, in a sense in¬ 
dependent of a spell of bad weather, and are 
less inclined to work on the ground when it 
is in a sodden condition. Frames require 
careful attention as to airing on every favour¬ 
able occasion. Sharp frost may also occur at 
any time now, and protecting material must 
be'kept dry and at hand for immediate) use. 
Swede Turnips may very soon be lifted and 
stored, and periodic supplies of Seakal© and 
Rhubarb must be brought in for forcing, so 
that a steady supply may be kept up. Mice 
are often very troublesome where Seakale is 
forced on the ground, and a keen look-out 
must be kept for these little plagues. 
Preston, Linlithgow. C. Blair. 
Flower Garden and 
Pleasure Ground. 
Roses.—Wherever it is desired to make new 
plantations the work should be proceeded with 
at once, as this is the best month for planting 
operations. The ground should be thoroughly 
trenched, and layers of good sound manure 
placed under both the top and bottom spits. 
Light soils should have a good proportion 
of solid cow manure, and a dressing of clay 
or marl would be highly advantageous. On 
heavy soils such as we have here it is a good 
plan to give a good dressing of such a compost 
as the following: road scrapings, old potting 
soil, lime, night soil, fowls’ droppings, and coal 
ashes, the whole having been thoroughly mixed, 
and allowed to lie in a heap for six months. 
Order in your plants, and by the time they 
come to hand the ground will have settled 
somewhat When planting, cut away any parts 
of the roots that have been injured in the pro¬ 
cess of lifting, also cut back any long, bare 
roots. See that the roots are naturally spread 
out in the pit, which should be convex rather 
than concave at the bottom. Plant about an 
inch deeper than they had been in the ground 
when lifted to allow for the newly worked soil 
subsiding. Pack the soil fairly firm about the 
roots, and when finished mulch the bed or 
border with some light stable manure ; moss 
litter answers admirably. 
Lack of space forbids me to deal with 
varieties. Mulch established plantations with 
materials similar to those advocated for new 
plantations. 
Conservatory and Greenhouse. 
Bulbs. —I again brg to remind readers that 
it is not intended to deal with forcing in these 
notes, but some of the bulbs potted early for 
cool treatment may now be introduced to the 
warmest corner of the conservatory or green - 
house, keeping them as near the glass as pos - 
sible to prevent them from getting drawn. It 
will be better to take the whole stock out of 
the plunging materials as soon as they are well 
rooted—that is, about six weeks after potting. 
Place them in a cold frame, give air on all 
favourable occasions, and protect from frost. 
Mums. —It is early yet to propagate, but 
with many of the varieties the best time to 
take cuttings is when you can get them in good 
condition. A shallow box with a pane of glass 
on the top and placed in the greenhouse is an 
ideal place for rooting a few precocious cuttings. 
Remove the glass for an hour daily, reversing 
it each time to prevent damping. C. C. 
THE LARGE FLOWERED 
DRAGONS HEAD. 
(Dracoccpha l am gran diflorum .) 
This is a somewhat rare and choice Draco- 
cephalum, which, however, possesses ample, 
merit to warrant widespread cultivation and 
popularity. 
With the exception of D. alpinum, it is of 
dwarfer habit than any other Dracooephalum, 
the whole plant being only about 6in. in 
height, of which total the larger half is 
flower stem. The leaves are of good size, 
deep green in colour, and the stems are 
almost prostrate. 
For so small a plant the size of the blooms 
is exceptionally large, many of them being 
fully 2in. in length. The colour is a very 
full, rich shade of blue, almost equal to that 
of the Gentian. Throughout the summer, and 
well into autumn, the blooms are freely pro¬ 
duced if the soil is fairly good and care is 
taken to keep slugs and snails at bay. 
Heather Bell. 
The Gardeners' Company. •— Somewhere 
back in the Stuart days, probably about 
1606, when .Tames I. was King, a charter was 
granted to the Worshipful Company of Gar¬ 
deners of the loyal City of London. Several 
subsequent charters' were issued, and there 
have been breaks in the continuity of the 
existence of the company, but it is still alive 
and flourishing. 
