I 
he Gardening World, Alril 24, 1909. 
To Our Readers and Advertisers. 
v\)TTO FOR THE WEEK: 
“ Colours are the smiles of Nature—her 
aughs, as in the flowers .”—Leigh Hunt, 
GONTENTS. 
The present is the age of consolidation 
and amalgamation, and in this connec¬ 
tion newspapers do not differ from other 
businesses. After a separate existence 
of nearly a quarter of a century, The 
Gardening World will be amalgamated 
with its enterprising contemporary, Gar¬ 
den Life. This important change will, 
we venture to think, be in the interests 
of readers and advertisers alike. The 
large circulation of The Gardening 
World, added to that of Garden Life , 
cannot but be a gain to the clients of 
both journals. It enables the editor to 
provide an even better paper for his 
readers than hitherto, and it gives to the 
advertiser an immense advantage of a 
largely increased field for his efforts. 
The present issue of THE GARDENING 
World will be the last of its separate 
existence, but in its new form and under 
its new proprietary, we venture to think 
and hope it will have a long and prosper¬ 
ous career. The journal has been, and 
will continue to be conducted with enter¬ 
prise and judgment. 
We cannot allow the occasion to pass 
without expressing to our large circle of 
readers and advertisers our sincere thanks 
for their patronage, and bespeaking for 
the new proprietors the same kindly re¬ 
ception and indulgence. A notice by 
the proprietors of Garden Life appears 
herein. 
An Amateur s Letter to Amateurs. 
Amateur's Letter to Amateurs, An 261 
\rum Lily, The Culture of the 
I (illus.) . 265 
Carnation Nurseries, The “W arren' 
| (illus.) . 262 
Cnquire Within . 269 
plowed* Garden, The (illus.) . 267 
fruit Garden, The (illus.) .267 
Greenhouse, The Amateur's. 26S 
vitchen Garden, The (illus.) . 267 
:hrchids for Amateurs . 262, 26S 
Sweet Peas: Work for April . 266 
Tropaeolums in Wall Gardening 
! (illus.) . 272 
Work of the Week . 267 
Rtau of 
ipring speaks again, and all our woods 
are stirred, 
\nd all our wide, glad wastes aflower 
around, 
That twice have heard keen April's clar¬ 
ion sound, 
since first we here together -saw and 
heard 
spring’s light reverberate and reiterate 
word, T f 
shine forth and speak in season. Lite 
stands crowned. 
Swinburne. 
Dedicatory lines to the author of 
“ Aylwin.” 
-f+4- 
Violets are being increasingly used in 
he manufacture of sweets, and further 
nvestigations are being made into the 
illeged. but quite unproven, medicinal 
irtues in the leaf. 
As for the people who think the) can 
nake an easy living growing flowers my 
idvice to them is, says Hamilton e, 
n the “ Daily Mail” : Think again. Their 
:econd thoughts will be best. 
CXCII. 
The Fernery. 
Most gardens have some positions that 
might well be transformed into beauty 
spots of quiet, restful green. There is 
something in the wonderful grace of Ferns 
that makes them distinct, apart from, un¬ 
related to our ordinary, garden plants. 
Interesting, too, with a strange interest, 
cur Ferns belong to ages in the earth’s 
history far earlier than our flowering 
plants, and we remember this as we watch 
their quiet beauty. Ferns dislike a sour 
sodden soil, and they dislike draught) 
corners or positions otherwise exposed to 
draughts ; but, if these things are guarded 
against, they are very accommodating, 
and often flourish exceedingly well m 
enclosed town or suburban gardens. I 
recall a little town garden, one that was 
favoured with a minimum of sunshine, 
and yet always looked well kept, beauti¬ 
ful. and thoroughly inviting. It was just 
Grass and Ferns for the summer season 
in the portion where little sunshine 
reached it — but Grass and Ferns beauti¬ 
fully kept, and in the healthiest condition. 
The cultivation of Ferns becomes more 
absorbing the longer trial we give it, and 
we need not hesitate to devote our space 
to them. It will often suffice to add.leaf- 
mould and sharp sand to the ordinary 
garden soil to make a suitable compost. 
Let us give them a deep root-run, and 
with the help of rock, or, if needs be, 
clinker, old tree stumps—a cool one, for 
they will get their roots under these and 
enjoy the moisture these help to retain 
in the soil. 
The present is an excellent time to 
establish Ferns, and the choice is large 
enough to have a catalogue listing four¬ 
teen hundred varieties, but all are not 
hardy enough for out-of-door cultivation, 
though a large proportion of them are^ 
Many people are under the impression that 
the beautiful Osmundas must be grow n 
near water, yet I could tell of one grow¬ 
ing close under a house wall and no water 
anywhere near. Ferns are inexpensite to 
buy, and some of the commonest are the 
most effective; our common Male Fern, 
for instance, and its many variations, and 
the Buckler Fern, and Shield Ferns are 
all hosts in themselves. Then take the 
Hart's tongues (I am purposely using the 
familiar names), how effective and hand¬ 
some these are, and how well worth grow¬ 
ing as luxuriantly as' we can possibly 
grow them! In planting these Hart’s 
tongues it is beneficial to add some lime 
in some form or another to the soil, and 
old mortar rubble is as good as anything. 
I have myself a particular fondness for 
the good old Polypody,, and greatly, I 
think, because it responds so magnifi¬ 
cently to generous treatment, and not 
only the familiar common kind but also 
its varieties that are less frequently met 
with. By all means let us plant P. 
vulgare trichomanoides and P. vulgare 
Prestonii, and here again we do well to 
add lime, especially in the form of old 
mortar rubble, to the soil, as these, too, 
are benefited by it. 
Both Japan and America send us varie¬ 
ties of some of our familiar Ferns and 
many of these are quite hardy in our 
climate. To anyone contemplating the 
purchase of even a few Ferns I would 
say—obtain a Fern catalogue ; that alone 
will awaken interest in these plants and 
will probably give us surprises, for it is 
surprising to discover how some of our 
familiar old favourites have deviated front 
the type and developed into beautiful 
crestecf forms and other variations. Thus, 
we may have four native varieties of the 
stately Osmunda regalis, and foreign 
varieties in the beautiful O. gracilis, O. 
clavtoniana, O. japonica corymbifera, and 
I may say here that though peat is accept¬ 
able to the Osmundas it is not a necessity 
if plenty of leaf-mould be used. Some 
of the foreign Osmundas, though quite 
hardy, have" a wonderfully delicate look 
_so ‘ delicate that I could tell of one 
novice who, when she had bought them, 
feared to plant them outside, but potted 
them up instead, and in time they made 
