February 29, 190S. 
TUB GARDEN I NO WORLD. 
137 
. . The Culture of . . 
Sweet Peas. 
There are, perhaps, few plants that give 
so much pleasure for a little outlay as 
the Sweet Pea. Almost anyone can grow 
Sweet Peas sufficiently well to make the 
little trouble involved a source of plea¬ 
sure ; and there is no garden, either great 
or small, that would not look the brighter 
for having these plants in them during 
the summer months. 
Soil Preparation. 
Anv good garden soil is capable of pro¬ 
ducing good Sweet Peas. The ground 
'should be rich, plenty of well-decayed 
manurt being dug in previous to sowing. 
This is best done in autumn, and left 
rough. If not practicable in autumn, do 
it as early in the new year as the weather 
permits, well working in plenty of good 
farmyard manure that has been lying in 
a heap since the previous autumn; or old 
hotbed or Mushroom-bed manure is also 
of the utmost value. Dig in as deeply as 
possible, which will answer as well as 
trenching. 
Sowing._ 
Sow your Sweet Peas as soon as the 
soil will work well, and in the open, ac¬ 
cording to the" locality. The best time 
would be about the middle of February, 
and - continue to the end of March or 
April, sowing a row in May for a succes- 
s’on of bloom. In the milder parts of 
the kingdom the seeds may be sown as 
early as October and November, but in 
some places it is scarcely worth while tak¬ 
ing this risk. An early row can be had 
from a sowing made in pots or boxes at 
the end of January or beginning of Feb- 
ruarv, in cold frames or greenhouse, 
planting out at the end of March. 
The seeds should be sown about two 
inches deep, rather thinly, say, one or 
two inches between each seed, in double 
lines, six to eight inches apart, and four 
to six feet between each double row. Thin 
out when two inches high to four or six 
inches or more from plant to plant. 
Never grow Sweet Peas thickly if you wish 
for the best results. Neatly stake with 
undressed twiggy sticks, not less than 
six feet high. If birds or mice are likely 
to be troublesome, steep the seeds for 
fifteen minutes in paraffin oil before sow¬ 
ing. It will not affect the germination. 
Mulching. 
This mulching of the ground is of great 
imnortance. Always mulch before the 
hot weather sets in; the best time would 
be after a heavy rain. By this method 
you cover up and retain the moisture, 
which it is impossible to get if left until 
after a spell of hot dry weather. 
To keep a plentiful supply of cut Sweet 
Peas, take off all seed pods as they ap¬ 
pear. If allowed to remain and ripen, 
all blooming soon comes to an end. Cut 
your blooms every day, and the more you 
will have to cut. 
Dorchester. ’ H. W. WAKELY. 
-- 
Examination in Horticulture for Lads and 
Young Men. 
An examination in elementary horticul¬ 
ture for lads and young men under 19 
years of age will be held under the 
"auspices of the Royal Horticultural So¬ 
ciety on Wednesday, March 25th, in as 
many different centres in Great Britain 
and Ireland as circumstances may de¬ 
mand. The general conduct of this ex¬ 
amination will be on similar lines to that 
of the more general examination. In¬ 
tending candidates should write at once 
for a copy of the syllabus to the Secre¬ 
tary, Royal Horticultural Society, Vin¬ 
cent Square, London, S.M . 
. . A Beautiful 
Candytuft 
(Aethioncn.a pulchellum). 
For some years past a considerable 
number of very pretty flowers have been 
introduced to cultivation belonging to the 
genus Aethionema. Some of these have 
been named Candytufts, and though they 
belong to the same family as the true 
Candytufts, the correct name for the latter 
would be Iberis. The habit of the plants 
of the various species of Aethionema is 
also very similar to the Candytufts, ex¬ 
cept that, as a rule, they are much dwarfer, 
more compact in habit, and the flowers 
are frequently of some shade of blush, 
pink or rose colour. The flowers of the 
species under notice are of a soft pink, 
and produced in such number as to form 
quite a pretty spot on the rockery where 
they bloom. The leaves are also small, 
linear and of a sea-green hue. The whole 
plant varies from 6 in. to 8 in. in height, 
and healthy pieces present quite a cheer¬ 
ful aspect by reason of the profusion of 
flowers. Our photograph was taken in 
the Royal Gardens, Kew, towards the end 
of June. 
Ae. pulchellum is a perennial which 
may be propagated by seeds when ob¬ 
tainable, but healthy plants will always 
furnish plenty of cuttings, which can be in¬ 
serted in July or August, in pots of light 
sandy soil, and placed under a hand-light 
or cold frame. They may be potted off 
singly in small pots as soon as rooted, or 
kept in the cutting pots till spring, and 
then potted till they get larger, or plan¬ 
ted out on the rocked in April. 
A HEALTHY man is the complement of 
the seasons, and in winter summer is in 
his heart.— Thoreau. 
Aethionema pulchellum. 
~\Lac!aren and Sons. 
