326 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
May 16, 1908. 
- Sweet Peas - 
THAT SCORCH. 
Undoubtedly more Sweet Peas are sown 
in March than at any other season. 
Nothing is more disappointing when 
one has made great efforts both in cul¬ 
ture and manure, and produced splendid 
growth with abundance of flowers of fine 
size and colour, than to see the major por¬ 
tion spoilt by scorching. 
It is odd that some kinds are so prone 
to do this ; unfortunately those that have 
the greatest tendency are those that have 
high colour and are much sought after, 
especially for decorative purposes. 
Amongst the many kinds I have grown 
I find Scarlet Gem and Henry Eckford 
the greatest offenders, although some 
others have the same tendency in a less 
degree. 
For many years I have given much 
attention to their culture, and can go 
back 25 years, when I selected out of 
Scarlet Invincible a bright one which was 
afterwards sent out by one of the leading 
seed firms. In this I found the same ten¬ 
dency, and although much has been writ¬ 
ten on the Sweet Pea we appear to be as 
ignorant of the cause as ever. I 
should be grateful if some of these ex¬ 
perts in raising could solve this question. 
Here is a subject for those interested to 
discuss in your paper. 
With an evil arises the question how to 
combat it. Shading is the answer to this, 
and to how many of the best colours in 
their most delicate tints this has to be 
done, apart from those that scorch. To 
those that make a hobby of exhibiting 
them labour is not of much importance, 
but to amateurs this has to be studied ; 
and to put on and remove shading is 
troublesome, and many amateurs cannot 
do this. 
Having to study labour in the manage¬ 
ment of a large garden, I was not pre¬ 
pared to go to this expense, although I 
grew Scarlet Gem and Henry Eckford 
from the first. After trying various posi¬ 
tions, I resolved to try sowing them where 
some high trees stood at a distance on the 
south-west side. This prevented them from 
scorching in the after part of the day. 
To shade them from morning sun, from 
8 o'clock till 12, I stood tall evergreen 
branches at a distance, thus shading them 
till 12 o’clock. These branches answered 
for near on a fortnight, when they gave 
way for a fresh lot. In this way for two 
years we had abundance of bloom of the 
very best colour. There are many diffi¬ 
culties in using canvas, the wind amongst 
others. 
I am under an impression they scorch 
more in some places than others, and that 
where the air is damp. I have observed 
the sun does not affect them before 8 
o’clock in the morning, even in the hot¬ 
test weather. 
Let me suggest sowing where they have 
partial shade, as above stated. It is quite 
useless trying to grow them well under 
the shade of trees. May I ask if any 
reader has tried growing under north 
walls ? Con. 
- +++ - 
The Strawberry is the first fruit of the 
year to ripen. 
Rosemary. 
Rosemary, which has gone out of favour 
in these later times, was in the olden days 
an evergreen praised by the poets, woven 
into garlands at weddings, while sprigs 
of it were carried at funerals. 
The Dead Rose. 
Still in the garden, stately and lone, 
The ghost of the dead queen sits on her 
throne, 
Shrivelled and sere, with her mantle un¬ 
furl’d, 
While her sweet bloom is blown down the 
winds of the world. 
Now divorced from the sun, unredeem’d 
by the dew, 
Love’s outcast, yet dear to the lovers she 
knew, 
For love that hath fed on the sweets of 
her breath 
Keeps the soul of the Rose that it cannot 
know death. 
Its bloom on the winds of the world may 
depart, 
But love shrines the soul of the Rose in 
its heart. 
J. C. M. Duncan. 
- a. w. - 
Prize Competitions. 
GENERAL CONDITIONS.—Competitors mast 
write on one side of the paper only. Regular 
paid contributors to THE GARDENING 
WORLD or other gardening journals are de¬ 
barred from entering, but occasional con¬ 
tributors may compete. The name and ad¬ 
dress of the competitor must appear on each 
article sent for competition. The Editor’s 
decision is final, and he reserves the right 
to reproduce, in any wayjl any article or photo¬ 
graph sent for competition. The conditions 
applying to each competition should be oare- 
fully read. 
WEEKLY 
PRIZES. 
A PRIZE OFTEN SHILLINGS will be given 
for the best paragraph or short article on any 
gardening subject, such as hints of practical 
interest to gardeners, notes on the propaga¬ 
tion or cultivation of flowers, fruits or vege¬ 
tables, eradication of pests, etc. The para¬ 
graph or article must not exceed a column, but 
value rather than length will be considered in 
making *he award. Mark envelopes “ Com¬ 
petition,” and post not later than the Monday 
follr wing date of issue.vEntries received later 
thin Tuesday (first post) will be left over until 
the following week. 
Two prizes of 2s. 6d. will be awarded each 
week for the two best letters, not exceeding 
150 words, on any interesting gardening sub¬ 
ject. 
RESULTS OF 
LAST WEEK’S 
COMPETITIONS. 
Some of the best papers in this competition 
aie too long, anJ we desire readers to keep 
within a column. 
The prize in the Readers’ Competition was 
awarded to “R. Thatcher” for the article on 
“ How to Cultivate Achimenes,” page 310. 
In the Prize Letter Competition a prize 
was awarded to “A. Y. M.,” for the article 
on “Bare Walls in the Greenhouse”; and 
another to “ J. M. Stevens” for the article on 
“ Echeveria,” page 312. 
Window Gardening. 
A window gay with flowers during the 
bright days of summer is a pleasing and 
refreshing sight, not only to the inmates: 
of the home, but to every passer-by. Hap¬ 
pening to pass through a rather mean 
street in the outskirts of a little town to¬ 
day, I was rather surprised to see the 
windows of almost every house filled with 
, pots containing for the most part vigorous 
looking Geraniums that had evidently 
been raised from cuttings. What a vast 
amount of pleasure these sturdy rows of 
fast-growing- shoots will give when the 
flower buds unfold and the dull surround¬ 
ings are brightened for a space with glow¬ 
ing trusses of scarlet! Here is a kind of 
gardening that all can indulge in, a; 
source of joy available to everyone. If 
the reader has never tried window gar¬ 
dening, perhaps this spring he will be¬ 
gin. There is a distinct fascination about 
it. Few living things respond more to 
loving care or provide more enjoyment 
than suitable window plants. 
There are a few things that must be 
attended to in order to have success in 
window gardening. The soil must be 
suitable, the plants selected must also be 
suitable, a sufficient sunnly of air, light 
and moisture must be provided, and dur¬ 
ing growth watering must be done with 
attention and intelligence. 
The soil should be so compounded as 
to form a mixture which, when well 
drained, will hold moisture and retain 
air. This is secured by using loam and 
leaf-mould. Loam, as most people know, 
is a natural mixture of clay and sand, 
and is therefore not so close and heavy 
as clay or as light and porous as sand. 
The addition of the leaf-mould increases 
the soil’s power of holding water. In 
filling boxes or pots with this compost it 
is most important to cover the bottoms 
with broken flower pots, to facilitate drain¬ 
age. If boxes are used, holes must be 
made in the bottom for the escape of 
superfluous water, as the spaces in the 
soil must be kept filled with air to secure 
healthy root action. 
If perennials are used, such as Be¬ 
gonias, a fresh potting must be given 
when the plants re-start growth in the 
spring. In watering, care must be taken 
not to overdo it. No rules can .be given, 
as each kind of plant requires its own 
particular treatment, but a little observa¬ 
tion will soon give one the proper clue. 
With regard to light, leaves have the 
power of setting themselves in the best 
position to catch the greatest amount of 
sunshine, so that when you find that the 
backs of the leaves are all directed to¬ 
wards the interior of the room there is 
no sense in turning the pots around, as 
the leaves will re-arrange themselves to 
take up the same position as before. In 
the leaves all the “organic” food of the 
plant is made, and it can only be made 
under the influence of sunlight, hence the 
saving power of the leaves to turn their 
upper or receiving surface so as to catch 
as much as possible of the starch-making 
force carried in the rays of light that 
reach the window. 
Another point to remember is that in. 
order to induce a bushv growth and an 
increased production of flowers the growth 
