304 THE 
spread widely open. The plants may 
bloom freely from the time they are 12 in. 
high, and 3^4 ft. is usually the limit of 
the height of plants we see in gardens. It 
is a Japanese species, and often cultivated 
under the name of M. halleana. 
Many of the Magnolias, especially those 
which attain the size of trees, are difficult 
to transplant owing to the fleshy character 
of the roots. M. stellata is one of the 
easiest, however, to transplant, being more 
of the nature of a dwarf shrub than a tree, 
and producing more fibrous roots. On 
account of the fleshy character of the roots, 
the best time to transplant Magnolias is 
in spring, just before growth commences, 
and as this is an early flowering one, it 
should be transplanted in February in the 
south of England, though it might still 
be transplanted in March, and in the far 
north the end of March would be the best 
time. As may be seen by the illustra¬ 
tion, the flowers come in advance of the 
leaves. 
The usual methods of propagating Mag¬ 
nolias, are bv seeds and by layers in the 
case of established plants. In July the 
voung shoots may have a tongue cut in 
them similar to that of a Carnation and 
pegged down on the soil. A little fresh 
sdil consisting of loam, leaf mould, and 
sand would encourage the production of 
roots. The layers should be watered twice 
or 'three times a Week if the weather 
happens to be dry at the time. 
- - 
The . . . 
^aidephaif Tree 
A Letter 
To the Editor. 
Sir. — In one of your April numbers of 
the “ G. W.” Mr. Wyness jefers to a short 
story, as he terms it, re the Maidenhair 
Tree, which appeared in the letter com¬ 
petition. When I mentioned that speci¬ 
mens of this beautiful tree run to 80 fee't 
high in England, my critic desires to know 
of the locality of my statement. Since 
then I have been in communication with 
the gardener, Mr. R. Rintoul, Melbury 
Park, Dorchester, and he kindly gives the 
following information. The Maidenhair 
Tree you ask about is still here, 80 feet 
high or more, 7 feet in girth, 3 feet from 
the ground, and still in good health and 
going up yearly. Beside it is a Tulip 
Tree, Liriodendron, about the same 
height, which girths 13 feet, 3 feet from 
"the turf. Mr. Rintoul continues his letter 
on many more interesting trees. In our 
northern gardens I have come • across 
several Maidenhair Trees about 8 and 10 
feet high, but really poor examples. To 
see it tacked against a wall it would ap¬ 
pear a different subject altogether, and it 
was not far amiss to say that it has a 
struggle for existence with a sheltered wall 
in Scotland. 
Wishaw. A. V. M. 
-- 
It is not possible for .a Christian man 
to walk across so much as a rood of the 
natural earth, his mind unagitated and 
rightly poised, without receiving strength 
and hope from some stone, flower, leaf, 
or sound.” — RXJSKIN. 
The Flower Garden. 
The Lateness of the Season. 
On consulting my last year’s notebook, I 
find we are behind (the season with most 
things. ■ The majority of my Daffodils were 
a week or ten days later than they were last 
year. 'Of course there is some consolation in 
the fact that a late start means a later finish, 
and so it happens quite a number oif my 
Daffodils, and Other bulhs too, are still 
blooming. Such would not have been the 
case had I been residing a few miles away, 
for a friend’s garden was literally battered 
to pieces by a terrific storm of ( hail and 
snow that fell last month. It is extra¬ 
ordinary how the weather (plays such pranks 
within a short area. 
I cannot admit that April was an ideal 
month, for the weather was extremely 
changeable. However, I must say that I 
was glad that we had a good deal of rain, 
for it helped my newly-planted stuff con¬ 
siderably. Indeed, had the weather been on 
a par with that of last year I am afraid I 
should be mourning the loss of many things. 
The Gardening- Diary. 
The above remarks tend to show that a 
gardening notebook is of some interest, even 
after it is filled up. Apart from weather 
notes, a diary is useful ifor dotting down 
notes respecting crops and their movements. 
Of course the ordinary pocket diary is of 
little use for keeping a record of all the 
things grown. A stock book should also be 
kept, so that full details as to sowing, plant¬ 
ing, flowering, etc., may be entered. I dare 
say some would think this an awful fag, 
but it is really valuable in, the end, for one’s 
memory cannot be relied upon. Many a time 
I have been glad to go. back to an old stock 
book for reference. I generally use a phono 
book for the purpose, and I might add that 
the nimble shorthand is very useful, even 
for making garden notes. 
Roses. 
Roses are getting away finely now, and to 
my excited imagination the bushes look bet¬ 
ter than usual. The mild weather, and ab¬ 
sence of bitter winds and frosty nights of 
late, have set them off strongly, and this 
seems to suggest that the complete rest which 
the 'severe winter enforced has done them 
good. 
Retardation of Plants. 
It is a well-known, fact that before Rhu¬ 
barb, Lilies of the Valley, and such things 
can be forced they must be -subjected to a 
cold temperature, or otherwise sent to sleep. 
Etherisation is a means that is being em¬ 
ployed to make plants rest artificially"-. Cold 
storage also compels a complete rest. Conse¬ 
quently when brought into a warm atmos¬ 
phere the plants wake up with a rush, and 
endeavour to beat nature all the way. The 
same applies to plants out of doors. A 
severe and long winter holds them in check, 
and when the weather does change the sap 
moves at onoe, and the plants try to make 
up for lost time. 
Weeds and the Hoe. 
I wish it were possible to put weeds to 
sleep for all time. Whilst I have been busy- 
preparing my new quarters, the old have 
become smothered with weed seedlings of all 
descriptions. There are many garden flowers 
that will become weeds if left alone. Last 
year I devoted a large patch to Poppies of 
all descriptions. I have now enough Poppy 
seedlings- to cover a ten acre field. Of 
course when annuals set themselves on a 
par with weeds there is only one way to deal 
with them. Bring forth the hoe and conduct 
a wholesale slaughter. Hoeing time is 
really at hand now, and a rusty hoe indi¬ 
cates a lazy gardener, unless he is like my¬ 
self, too busy to keep it bright all the time. 
Poor man ! "Now is a good time to stop the 
antics of weeds that infest paths and drives. 
A dose of weed killer applied when the 
ground is moist will save much worry and 
will net blunt -the hoe. Some prefer to use 
an old knife for digging out the weeds, hut 
this compels kneeling, and if you get house¬ 
maid’s knee through weeding your own 
drive who pays the compensation? 
Planting- Annuals. 
The planting out of annuals that have 
been hardened off may take place from now 
onward. Never he in a great hurry, how¬ 
ever. If Asters and the like are set ou.t when 
only just out of the rough leaf stage, it is 
even chances that they will get scorched up, 
or else hoed out. The plants should be so 
large that a trowel i-s required to make a 
hole, not a toothpick. 
Pansies and Violas. 
Newly-planted Pansies and Violas are 
running into bloom, but if they are new 
stock from the nursery it is advisable to re¬ 
move the buds for a week or two, so that the 
plants may gain in size before hot weather 
comes. If these plants are on dry, light 
soil a mulch will obviate a lot of trouble. A 
sprinkling with the water can after a warm 
day will help the plants along, but do not 
soak the beds, or it will he a constant job. 
Car-nations. 
Watch Carnations carefully in order that 
the spot disease may he tackled should it 
appear. Stake these plants as soon as the 
shoots begin to push upward. 
Sweet Peas. 
Any Sweet Peas that have reached the 
height of four inches should now be got in 
position at once. Hold back laggards for a 
week or two. 
Herbaceous Plants. 
Herbaceous plants that are sending up a 
great number of shoots will -pay for thinning 
out. Remove the weakest growths, be they 
Phloxes or anything else. The flowers are 
all the better for it. 
Propagating Violets. 
Violet propagation should be pushed on 
with. Either runners or divisions will do, 
but it is generally admitted that rooted run¬ 
ners do best. 
Grass is growing amazingly, and must be 
constantly mowed to keep it in decent trim. 
The Fruit Garden. 
Insect Pests. 
An eagle eye should be on the watch for 
maggots and caterpillars on fruit trees. 
Give these wre-tches a few dajrs start and 
there is trouble in store. Quassia chips and 
soft soap, 3 lbs. of each with 25 gallons of 
water, is a ver}"- good mixture to cause 
biliousness among the gooseberr}"- caterpil¬ 
lars. The chips, of course, must be boiled. 
Raspberries. 
Raspberries also should have a dose if they 
are known to be infested with maggot. This 
fruit paj's for heavy mulching. Cut away 
all suckers that run away from the rows. 
