220 
TUB GA R DBM ISO WORLD. 
March 30, 1907. 
PRIZE LETTER COMPETITION. 
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? Readers are invited to contribute to this 
i column short letters discussing any gar- 
\ dening subject. 
\ Letters must not exceed 150 words each in 
Onion Ailsa Craig-. 
In connection with the above named 
Onion for exhibition purposes should they 
be classed as spring sown or autumn 
sown ? Preferably, say I, the first named. 
Several of my neighbours sow the seed in 
August, the same time as the Tripoli, and 
transplant to their permanent quarters in 
the following March or February. Others 
sow in boxes or pots, in January and place 
in gentle heat. I myself have sown in 
pots with remarkable success, always gain¬ 
ing the first prize at our local show, but 
I cannot see where they can be classed 
as spring sown as, according to the rules 
in the schedule there is a class for autumn 
sown and another for spring sown. I 
should term spring sown seed that sown 
in the open garden during March, and not 
transplanted during that month. 
T. Preston. 
Henley-on-Thames. 
Starved Rose Trees. 
It often happens to amateurs when buy¬ 
ing Rose trees, especially in markets, that 
the trees are wind dried and parched up, 
and when planted they gradually die off. 
One season I saw twenty trees lost through 
this reason. I therefore venture to state a 
remedy which I have successfully em¬ 
ployed myself. After the trees have been 
carefully planted I give copious waterings 
to the roots, though the soil must not be 
saddened by stagnation. After this, on 
warm days I repeatedly wet the stocks of 
standards or shoots of bushes until they 
begin to swell. After this I tie pieces of 
soft rag round the heads of the trees where 
I wish the buds to break, and keep them 
continually wetted until the buds burst 
forth. I then untie the rags, and loosely 
hang a large piece of rag over the buds 
until they are hardened to air and light. 
Hubert Yates. 
Southall. 
Gilia coronopifolia. 
I was much interested in your article on 
Gilia coronopifolia, page 97, and it fully 
deserves the nice things you say about it. 
I have grown it now for three years, treat¬ 
ing it as a tender annual. The seed is 
sown about the middle of February in a 
brisk heat, and as soon as large enough 
the seedlings are pricked off singly into 
thumb pots and gradually hardened off as 
the weather gets warmer. As soon as they 
have filled the small pots with roots give 
them a size larger, and finally pot them 
into 6-inch pots, using a mixture of loam, 
leaf-soil, and peat in equal parts with a 
liberal addition of coarse silver sand. Pot 
moderately firm and stand them in the 
open for the summer. They come into 
bloom about the end of September being 
placed in a light and airy house to flower. 
A. Dennett. 
Canterbury. 
length, and must be written on one side 
of the paper only. 
Two Prizes of 2s. 6d. each will be 
awarded each week for the two Letters 
which the Editor considers to be the best. 
Nig-ella M :ss Jekyll. 
This is an annual of great beauty, and 
one deserving of a place in all gardens. 
Sow early in March in pots filled with 
a rich compost, and place in a gentle heat. 
The seedlings, when large enough, should 
be pricked off into good deep boxes, and, 
being a strong rooting plant, finally in a 
good rich piece of ground where they are 
to flower. 
The flowers, of a nice blue, are sur¬ 
rounded by small elegant foliage and 
borne on long stems. They are splendid 
for cutting, and a vase of them is truly 
an acquisition. The plants, which grow 
about 18 inches hig'h, will be the better 
for some support. The row I had last 
season was supported by means of a cord 
fastened to a stake at the row ends and 
the leading flowers tied to it, the later 
and lower flowers requiring little further 
support. 
J. R. B. 
Uphall. 
A Useful Little Propagator. 
One may be easily made from an 
empty box. Cut the two sides and front 
so as to form a good slope, leaving suffi¬ 
cient depth to hold small pots standing on 
a good layer of cocoanut fibre. An odd 
slip or two of glass to cover closely over 
the top is required. Nail four strips of 
wood to form the legs at each corner of 
sufficient length to- allow a small oil lamp 
and a large tin baking dish to pass just 
freely under. Carefully trim the lamp 
once a day, and then fill the tin dish with 
hot water. Put this on the top of the 
lamp and allow an hour or two to pass 
before putting in the pots of seed, etc. 
As the first growth above the soil appears 
give a little air by raising one piece of 
the glass, allowing more air and longer 
time each day until the seedlings can 
come out of the propagator, and go in a 
sunny window or greenhouse. 
D. Erlam. 
Worthing. 
Dendrobium nobiie. 
There appears to be a somewhat keen 
discussion respecting the above, as to 
whether it should be grown in 
pots or baskets, but in my opinion 
pots are by far the best. With 
but few exceptions, Dendrobiums are very 
easily managed ; but it should be borne 
in mind by those who undertake their cul¬ 
ture that they require a decided period of 
rest, or “drying off” as the process is fre¬ 
quently termed. Water must be very 
carefully applied during the resting 
period, otherwise it is liable to start the 
plants prematurely. Sufficient only must 
be given to prevent shrivelling. 
I would advise pottine with equal parts 
fibrous peat and sphagnum, with a liberal 
addition of charcoal. The plants should 
be elevated upon a cone of soil above the 
rim of the pot, and potted firmly. Good 
drainage is very essential to success. I 
find that in pots they appreciate a liberal 
amount of water during the growing sea¬ 
son. Dendrobiums may be used for al¬ 
most any decorative purpose. 
J. Nibbs. 
Henley-on-Thames. 
Culture of Sweet Peas. 
These exquisite flowers, known by 
everyone, so charming in effect and pos¬ 
sessing so distinct a fragrance, are worthy 
of cultivation in every garden. Good 
heavy loam has been found the most bene¬ 
ficial’ for Sweet Peas, but the all-importanr 
point is to secure good seed. Seed sown 
in March will produce blooms in July. 
They are best sown in trenches about two 
feet deep and three feet between each 
trench, with a foot of horse manure at 
the bottom. The trenches should be filled 
in with soil to within four inches of the 
top and the seed then sown about three 
inches apart, subsequently filling up the 
trenches with soil. The seed should be 
protected from birds by means of bits of 
paper tied on to cotton and secured above 
where the seed has been planted. When 
the seedlings are a few inches high they 
should be supported by placing a few 
pea sticks among them. During dry 
weather you may be lavish in the supply 
of water and a watering of liquid manure 
given twice a week as they are coming 
into bloom will be found excellent. Grown 
in patches of different colours they pro¬ 
duce a most charming effect. For de¬ 
corative purposes they are unsurpassed. 
Their delightfully refreshing fragrance, 
combined with their delicate, dainty tints, 
give one .a feeling of rest and content, 
and inspire one with longing to be the 
possessor of them in plenty. Being long¬ 
stemmed and in every hue of the rainbow, 
they lend themselves to almost any floral 
device, and fully accentuate the poet’s ap- 
priate statement that “A thing of beauty 
is a joy for ever.” A gentleman one lec¬ 
turing on “ Sweet Pea Culture ” gave the 
following rhyme as a help to all would-be 
growers, and those who put it into prac¬ 
tice will be able to verify the truth of the 
statement: 
“ The deeper you trench, the finer the 
P 6 ^. * 
The thinner vou sow, the stronger they'll 
be. 
Keep using the hoe, and take it from me, 
The more blossom cut, the more you will 
‘ S66. 55 
Alice Dalton. 
Dublin. 
-f+4- 
Cyrtomium Rochfordi.—A fine plant 
of this at the meeting of the R.H.S. on 
the 5th inst. seemed like a plumose 
variety of the well known C. falcatum with 
the pinnae lacerated, cut and toothed m 
a variety^ of ways and looking very dis¬ 
tinct. The fronds are of a rich dark 
glossy green and without spores. It will 
be appreciated by those who know the 
striking habit of the ordinary C. falcatum. 
A First-class Certificate was accorded to 
the e'xhibitors, Messrs. Thomas Rochford- 
and Sons, Tumford Nurseries, Brox-. 
bourne.. 
