May 30, 1908. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
363 
—A Trailing Verbena 
all the Mikado’s subjects in England 
there was not one on that occasion who 
did not sigh for his own land, with its 
ethereal beauty-worship. I know there 
will soon be a sight in Worcestershire to 
break his heart, however—and in many 
another part of this country. If we had 
had a holiday half-way between Easter 
and Whitsuntide, perhaps more of us 
might have even learnt to love this par¬ 
ticular glory of Spring in something of 
rare old Herrick’s spirit, which is often 
as much better than anything Japanese 
as our thoughts of womankind are better. 
We are a heavier witted race than they, 
no doubt: and that “ cleanly wantonesse” 
is just what seems a-wanting to redeem 
so many serious lives .—The late Jose-pJl 
Hatton. 
Hints on 
Growing MSlGlS. 
German Asters for the last few years 
have been a total failure in many parts of 
Northern England. 
Many amateurs have given up their 
culture as hopeless, and have turned their 
attention to early-flowering Chrysanthe¬ 
mums instead. Although the best prices 
have been paid for seed, the same result 
accrues; not fifty per cent, of the seed 
germinates, and many““of the seedlings 
that do appear, damp off before they at¬ 
tain any size. At the time of flowering, 
many apparently healthy plants drop off ; 
a little brown ring around the stem at 
the soil surface shows that decay has per¬ 
meated the whole support of the plant. 
It should never be attempted to grow 
Asters in cold, wet, heavy soils, or in a 
draughty, shaded, or smoky situation. 
The position which suits them best is an 
open one, and sunny, and should not be 
wind-swept. The soil should be of a 
porous nature, especially the surface soil, 
so as to allow quick drainage. A fairly 
rich soil is essential for strong, sturdy 
plants. 
A very good compost is turfy loam, leaf 
mould, well-decayed manure, silver sand, 
and a little soot and lime incorporated. 
The hoe is a very useful implement for 
their well-being, and should be freely 
used among the plants, loosening the sur¬ 
face and aerating the soil. Weak liquid 
manure should be applied at the flowering 
, period, to give lustre and beauty to tbe 
blooms, as well as to increase their size. 
The seeds should be sown on a hotbed, 
or in a heated greenhouse, the above- 
named compost being admirably suited 
for the purpose, afterwards sprinkling the 
, surface over with a dust composed of sil¬ 
ver sand, crushed mortar rubble, and 
, ashes, which will prevent a large percent¬ 
age of them from damping off. 
When the seedlings have made their 
first two leaves, air should be admitted 
very carefully, a little to begin with, 
graduallv increasing it as the seedlings 
grow. They r can afterwards be pricked out 
into frames and shaded for a few days, 
a little ventilation being necessary'. 
Thev should be gradually and thor¬ 
oughly hardened off before planting in 
the flowering beds, and showery weather 
chosen for this operation to assist estab¬ 
lishment. 
Joseph Floyd. 
In the case of the improved garden 
varieties of Verbenas, it is necessary to 
peg down the shoots to get the ground 
closely covered early in the season. The 
above variety does not require such treat¬ 
ment, as the stems naturally creep along 
the ground and cover all the surface in 
practically a foot square of ground. The 
leaves are small, nearly triangular, and 
deeply cut into three narrow', finger-like 
segments, or these may' be again cut in 
the larger leaves. The flow'ers are of a 
deep carmine-rose, and the segments 
being edged with a distinct white line, 
srive the flowers a sparkling appearance. 
The variety is practically a Verbena with 
variegated" flowers, and very pretty. 
It may be propagated in the same way 
as the other Verbenas, namely, by' cut¬ 
tings, about the beginning of September, 
when the intention is to use the young 
plants for bedding purposes. Possibly', 
also, it could be grown with satisfaction 
Sutton’s at the Franco-British Exhibition. 
Messrs. Sutton and Sons, of Reading, 
have made a big effort at Shepherd's Bush. 
They have a marvellous display in the 
large beds of flow'ers running to the right 
and left of the main avenue and adjacent 
to the Palace of Music. 
In the centre beds at each end and 
nearest the main avenue are a crowrn and 
the words “Sutton and Sons” outlined in 
Golden Feather oil a ground-w'ork of 
Pansies and Violas. In the prominent 
round beds to the right and left of this 
are some grand specimens of their Poly'- 
anthus, the Giant Yellow' and Giant 
White grown from seed sown last y'ear. 
Between this is to be seen brilliant beds 
of the Nemesia strumosa Suttonii, that 
striking annual which w'as first introduced 
b->- Messrs. Sutton from South Africa in 
(Verbena tenera Mahoneti). 
as a basket plant in a greenhouse, but as 
Verbenas like a free play of air about 
them, greenhouses are often kept too close 
and w'arm for the healthy development of 
this class of plant with soft leaves liable 
to mildew when kept for any' length of 
time in a close and moist atmosphere. 
It would be an admirable plant for 
covering the ground in beds planted, for 
instance, thinly' with tuberous Begonias, 
Fuchsias, or specimens of Zonal or Ivy¬ 
leaved Pelargoniums. The Verbena 
w'ould serve to cover the ground betw'een 
them and keep up a display of flow'ers till 
well into September, leaving the other 
plants standing up prominently' in the 
midst of them. All these Verbenas can, 
of course, also be propagated by seeds 
when procurable. The variety' first made 
its appearance in 1S70, but suffered neg¬ 
lect for a time like other Verbenas, when 
people mismanaged them until they got 
tired of them. 
1S88, and has now developed under their 
care and selection both in variety of 
colour and size of flower. Many hundreds 
of Sutton's Perfection Stock make a back¬ 
ground to the east and w'est, and the 
whole is lined with their Aubrietia vio- 
lacea from seed sown in the year 1907. 
There are also prominent beds of beauti¬ 
ful colours of Sutton's Primula japonica 
hybrids, which they have been selecting 
for many' years. Throughout the exhibi¬ 
tion season visitors will find in Messrs. 
Sutton's beds a constant display of all the 
best summer-flow'ering plants growm from 
seed. Messrs. Sutton w'ere appointed to 
supply all the grass seeds required by' the 
exhibition authorities, and the beauty of 
the grounds is much enhanced by the bril¬ 
liancy of the lawns produced by' their 
seeds, while the splendid turf of the Sta¬ 
dium is admired bv all. 
