236 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
April 6, 1907. 
PRIZE LETTER COMPETITION. 
more at home amongst rocks and stones 
Surrounded by other choice plants. 
The Sea Lavender may be propagated 
by seeds, but these are of slow growth 
during their early stages. Large clumps 
can, therefore, be readily divided, and 
the pieces usually take kindly to this 
form of treatment. Those who have only 
a small plant can increase it without dis¬ 
turbing the parent specimen by taking off 
Cuttings. Each crown with.a short por¬ 
tion of stem will make a cutting, and if 
inserted firmly in sandy soil and placed 
under a handlight it may be rooted during 
the summer months. That method of pro¬ 
pagation has much «to recommend it for 
those who have no greenhouse. Indeed, 
artificial heat is not at all necessary if the 
cultivator takes the precaution to root 
the cuttings during July and August when 
the heat of the sun is quite sufficient to 
root cuttngs of practicably any hardy 
plant that will form roots. 
--- 
Annual Statices. 
The decorative value of the Statices is 
too well known to require comment. The 
dried panicles are ever in demand 
throughout the winter, when the garden is 
destitute of flowers. 
It may appear somewhat premature to 
speak of making preparations for next 
winter at the dawn of spring, but in gar¬ 
dening matters we have always to look 
ahead, and it is really necessary to get 
the seeds in of any of the pretty annual 
Statices without delay, if the plants are 
to produce good stems of bloom for dry¬ 
ing. One often sees in the middle of 
summer poor, weakly half-grown plants 
of these annual species, producing puny 
little stems of bloom that are quite use¬ 
less for preserving, and often the plants 
are condemned as worthless weeds, 
whereas the fact is they have not been 
given a chance to do themselves justice. 
Annual Statices will produce capital 
heads, and furnish an ample supply of 
decorative flowers if they are sown early, 
and afforded liberal treatment from be¬ 
ginning to end of their existence. 
No time should be lost in getting the 
seed sown in light, sandy soil. The boxes 
or pans should be placed under a shelter 
of glass—but not in a heated house—until 
the advent of really good spring weather, 
when they will be better in a sheltered 
position out of doors. The young seed¬ 
lings must be kept moving in fresh, 
sweet soil, until they may be planted in 
the open, which should be as soon as all 
danger of frost is past. 
A well-dug and manured soil is neces¬ 
sary, and during the growing season the 
plants must not be allowed to suffer for 
want of water. 
Frequent supplies of liquid manure will 
have a wonderful effect upon the size and 
substance of the flowers, and when thus 
well grown the annual Statices produce a 
quantitv of really useful material for 
winter decoration. S. Bonduellii deserves 
first mention, chiefly on account of its 
colour, yellow being an unusual shade in 
this family. 
S. sinuata is a fine blue, whilst a variety 
of it exists which is parti-coloured blue 
and white. Another good thing is S. 
Suworowii with rosy purple flowers. 
“Heather Bell.” 
Readers are invited to contribute to this 
column short letters discussing any gar¬ 
dening subject. 
Letters must not exceed 150 words each in 
length, and must be written on one side 
oj the paper only. 
TW( Prizes of zs. bd. each will be 
awarded each week for the two Letters 
which the Editor considers to be the best. 
Tennis Netting for Sweet Peas. 
Odd ends or old lawn tennis netting can 
be used with advantage in the place of' 
sticks for Sweet Peas. Take a few stout 
stakes according to the length of the row 
of Peas to be staked, and to these tie the 
netting, or, better still, thread the stakes 
which are best used about a yard apart. 
Of course, the height to- which the Peas 
will grow must not be lost sight of. Plant 
the stakes firmly into the rows, and the 
Peas will shoot up on either side and cling 
to the netting; the flowers will stand out 
from the leaves and not get buried as 
is sometimes the case when sticks are used. 
Sweet Peas trained in this way have a 
better effect than when climbing on sticks, 
as they do not get straggly or blown over 
by a high wind. 
Peas. 
Successful Drainage. 
We are all conversant with the dangers 
of a badly crocked or drained pot, and 
no cultivator, however skilful, will ever 
succeed so well if the drainage is ill-set. 
The object of drainage is, first, to relieve 
the soil of water that otherwise would be¬ 
come stagnant, sour and harmful to plant 
life, and second, to prevent choking, be¬ 
cause soil choked with water excludes air, 
and air, which follows water as it retreats 
downwards, is not only essential to plant 
life, but sweetens the soil. Have the 
drainage carefully laid, placing one large 
crock over the hole, concave side down¬ 
wards, and around it small pieces, so as 
to keep the soil from choking. Before 
potting put in a good layer of decayed 
leaves, pieces of turf, or moss. Then you 
are making'a road to success. 
Wishaw. J. W. F. 
Tidying-up. 
This is a little hint for amateurs to 
whom time and space mean a great deal, 
and I hope it may prove useful. In the 
first place save time by having as little 
“tidying-up” to do as possible. Have a 
place for everything and keep it there. 
If there is no tool shed, use a large box 
in which to keep all smaller tools, such 
as hammer, nails, trowel, etc. Keep this 
handy with the larger tools near the gar¬ 
den door, and no time will be lost in 
hunting for the tools one requires. After 
each operation in the garden clear up all 
necessary things' neatly, putting away 
string, stakes, and burning rubbish at 
once. Any necessary repairing, painting 
of chairs, tubs, etc., should be got through 
during the winter, and when other work 
is ’slack. When sowing seeds save the 
packets, and they will come in again when 
any ripe seed from the plants has been 
saved for future sowing. 
.D. Erl am. 
Worthing. 
Rose Lamarque for Growing urtdc 
Glass. 
This is one of the best Roses for indoo: 
for any purpose. The flowers are whit- 
shaded lemon anct are borne in ciuste 
from two to ten blooms on a spray, 
treated well the plants will flower near, 
all the year round, but would be at the 
best about Easter. Pruning is the mai 
point to be considered. As soon as tl 
flowers are -over, cut away the greater pa 
of the old flowering wood, so as to e: 
courage long strong shoots. Then aboi 
November thin out weak growths, la\ir 
in the strong ones about six or eight inch 
apart. When the plants begin to grm 
pick off all old leaves, and wash with wrj 
soft-soap water if green fly attacks then 
fumigate with XL All vaporiser, and ( 
mildew, spray with a solution of flowers ■ 
sulphur at the rate of one ounce in tv 
and a half or three gallons of water. 
* H. W. Wakely. 
Dorchester. 
The Shallot. 
The Shallot requires the same treatmei 
as Garlic. In recently manured and dan- 
ground it is liable to be attacked by tl 
maggot and a kind of mould, and in ar 
case it is well in planting to leave tl 
points of the bulbs a little above the su 
face. Plant the bulbs in February < 
the beginning of March. When the roo 
have taken good hold of the ground it is 
good practice to remove the earth fro 
about the bulbs, so as to, leave the 
wholly out of the ground. In July < 
August, when the leaves turn yelloi 
the bulbs should be taken up, and, afti 
having been dried in the sun for sever, 
days, thev should be placed in nets, < 
tied up in ropes like Onions, and hur 
up in a dry airy room from which fro 
is excluded. 
W. Sherringham. 
Dorset. 
To Destroy Ant Hills on the Lawn. 
Take a pointed wooden stake and pier> 
a few holes in the ant mounds down 
the level of the lowest gallery. Into the 
holes, according to size and depth, pot 
an ounce or so of bisulphide of carbo; 
and immediately press a little clay ov 
the surface of the holes to keep in tl 
fumes. If necessary, repeat this oper; 
tion within a week or two. Anothe 
method is to place a piece of well-wette 
carpet or old blanket over the holes in 
mediately after applying the bisulphic 
and let it stay there -for ten minutes; the 
remove it, and with a lighted paper at tl 
end of a bean-stick, set fire to the ga 
which will explode and kill almost evei 
ant in the colony. 
(Miss) M. A. Selman. 
Chippenham. 
