WORLD. February 27, 1909. 
THE GARDENING 
Sweet Peas 
Work for February. 
The early months of the New Year 
always bring with them a large assort¬ 
ment of literary matter relating' to the 
Sweet Pea, but I suppose that the Sweet 
Pea Annual is the best appreciated of 
all.' This year’s production seems an ad¬ 
vance in every respect upon its forerun¬ 
ners, and reflects great credit upon its 
editors. 
Mendelism and Sweet Peas. 
The most important article is that by 
Mr. Cuthbertson (of Dobbie’s) on “Men¬ 
delism as Applied to Sweet Peas.” The 
matter is not treated from a purely tech¬ 
nical or scientific point of view, but in a 
popular manner, so that even readers 
who have no botanical knowledge can 
understand something of the application 
of this natural law which is at present en¬ 
gaging so much attention. 
A long explanation of Mendelism would 
be out of place here, but it might be said 
that by its aid we can now understand the 
reasons for many of the seemingly pecu¬ 
liar results obtained in the cross-fertilisa¬ 
tion of Sweet Peas. Certainly all who 
wish to shine as raisers of new varieties 
should become acquainted with some of 
the main facts % of Mendelism. Not only 
will they be able to work with more cer¬ 
tainty, but the most difficult task con¬ 
nected with their work—that of fixing their 
varieties — will be greatly simplified. 
The Most Popular Varieties. 
The annual audit of the varieties ex¬ 
hibited at the Society's Show always at¬ 
tracts great attention, and it is included in 
the above publication. Helen Lewis, 
Countess Spencer, Frank Dolby, Mrs. 
Hardcastle Sykes, and Tohn Ingman are 
the five most popular varieties. Owing to 
the offer of valuable prizes, Burpee’s 
Primrose and White Spencers occupy very- 
high positions, but there are good rea¬ 
sons to doubt whether all the bunches ex¬ 
hibited under those names were from seed 
of these two varieties. Most probably in 
many cases Clara Curtis and Etta Dyke 
were the true names of the bunches shown. 
Nora Unwin and Etta Dyke are each 
higher than Dorothy Eckford, but Helen 
Pierce and King Edward VII. still retain 
high positions, although they are of the 
old or grandiflora type. 
Join the N.S.P.S. 
The Annual is sent free to all members, 
and I should like to remind readers that 
this is an excellent time to join the 
National Sweet Pea Society. Horticul¬ 
tural societies also are advised to become 
affiliated, for in return for a. small sub¬ 
scription they receive, amongst other 
benefits, the Society’s silver medal for 
competition amongst their members. This 
always proves a valuable attraction to 
amateur growers, who prefer it to money 
prizes. 
Sweet Peas under Glass. 
By this ‘■'•me. where Sweet Peas are be¬ 
ing raised under glass, the young plants 
will in some cases be appearing above the 
soil. If so, they should be given a light 
position and should not be hurried on at 
all. It is not yet too late to sow under 
glass, but the seeds should be planted 
early now. 
Advice on Watering. 
When seeds are raised in pots or boxes 
there is sometimes doubt as to when to 
water. The plants must not, of course, 
be allowed to become dry at the roots, 
but evaporation is very slight at this sea¬ 
son of the year (unless the plants have 
been unwisely placed in a warm green¬ 
house), and if the pots are watered when 
the seeds are sown, they can then be left 
for a week or two. An excess of water 
will cause the seeds to rot, especially the 
mottled and the white ones, which are 
more susceptible to the wet than are the 
others. 
Sowing Out of Doors. 
In many districts seeds may now be 
sown out of doors, and as a rule the best 
results are obtained from early sowings. 
The main object now is to sow when the 
soil is in good condition, so wait until it 
is free from frost and is not too wet. 
Take out a small trench two or three 
inches deep, place the seeds in, and re¬ 
turn the soil, making it fairly firm. Rows 
should be at least six feet apart, and the 
seeds two or three inches apart. Whether 
the seeds are in a double or single row 
makes but little difference so long as the 
plants are properly thinned out after¬ 
wards. 
Districts vary, but round London and 
in the eastern and southern counties the 
middle of March is probably the favourite 
time for sowing seed, but it ought all to 
be in by the end of the month. Very 
early spring sowing, like autumn sowing, 
is sometimes risky, but when it is success¬ 
ful it yields results superior to those from 
later sowings. 
If it is convenient, it will probably be 
an advantage to give the Sweet Peas a 
piece of ground on which they have not 
previously been grown, but this advan¬ 
tage is frequently over-estimated, for if 
the soil is well treated, excellent results 
can be obtained year after year from the 
same piece of ground. 
.Where Sweet Peas are fairly well grown 
there will be no need for successive sow¬ 
ings, for the first batch will continue in 
flower for several months. 
Digging and Manuring. 
Any digging that has not yet been com¬ 
pleted should be proceeded with at once, 
as the Sweet Pea, like all other plants, 
does not like- a loose soil that has not 
pronerly settled down. If manure used 
now is fresh, it should be placed deep 
down, so that the roots of the young seed¬ 
lings, when they are planted out, do not 
come into dose contact with it. 
G. F. Drayson. 
In the island of Jamaica there grows a 
tree with the botanic name of Daphne La- 
getto, from the branches of which native 
workmen make peculiarly strong and ex¬ 
cellent whips. 
British Gardeners’ Association. 
“ Gardens of Roses ” was the title of a 
lecture delivered on the 20th inst. by Mr. 
George Gordon (Editor of “ The Gar¬ 
deners’ Magazine”) before the members of 
Haslemere and District branch of the 
B.G.A; 
- +++ - 
The Culture of 
Early-Flowering 
Chrysanthemums. 
Early-flowering Chrysanthemums are 
hardy, and generally survive the rigours 
of the winter season, but to make certain 
that the stock will not be depleted to anv 
extent it is better, when the flowering 
season is over, to dig up the roots, plant 
them in a cold frame, or put them in 
boxes—used fish boxes being very suitable 
— and place them in a cool greenhouse. 
Chrysanthemums revel in fairly rich 
soil. This year I grew a number of 
plants in a herbaceous border which had 
been left severely alone as far as manur¬ 
ing is concerned. The blooms were 
simply wretched and not worth cutting, 
whereas in a deeply-dug and enriched bed 
which was devoted to Chrysanthemums 
alone thev did exceedingly well, and made 
a splendid show. 
Being an amateur, and the time I have 
at my disposal for the cultivation of 
flowers being somewhat limited, I have 
to choose the simplest, easiest and quick¬ 
est way, and instead of taking cuttings I 
detach the rooted shoots from the old 
stools and plant them where they are to 
bloom. After the plantlets have made 
about six inches of growth the tops are 
pinched off, the resultant shoots being 
again topped when about 6 inches in 
length. 
This has the desired result of making 
the bushes more dwarf, sturdy and com¬ 
pact, and with the increased number of 
stems there is a correspondingly larger 
quantity of blooms. 
In transferring the old roots to the 
greenhouse I sometimes find that these are 
not the only things which had been 
shifted, as slugs have left traces of their 
undesirable presence. Paying a nocturnal 
visit, the culprits are caught red-handed, 
if the term may be used, at their work.of 
destruction, and an end is speedily put 
to their depredations. We generally have 
a liking for certain varieties of Chrysan¬ 
themums, and one of my favourites is Le 
Pactole, a beautiful bronzy-yellow, with 
slightly incurving petals. In the north, 
here, it is rather late for flowering out of 
doors, and should be carefully lifted, put 
in a pot and placed indoors. 
One of the best whites I have grown 
is Champ-de-Neige, a very early flowering 
variety. It is very dwarf, and makes a 
lovely pot plant. 
An excellent late white is Niveus. It is 
easily grown, very fine, and is‘ at its best 
about Christmas, when flowers are greatly 
in demand. 
Dund#e. James L. Gray, 
