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654 
THE GARDENING WORLD. October 5, 1907. 
ing one is Escallonia macrantha, which gets 
to 20 it. or 30 fit. high in the neighbourhood 
of the sea, and though hardly likely to grow 
so tall with you, yet it would help to form 
shelter. Dwarfer plants are Olearia 
Haastii, Euonymus japonicu.s aureus, the 
Golden Privet (Ligustrum ovalifolium 
aureum), Tree Box (Buxus sempervirens), 
Veronica Traversii, The Mahonia (Berberis 
Aquifolium), the Portugal Heath (Erica lu- 
sitanica), and Portuguese Laurel (Prunus 
lusitanica). All of the above are evergreen, 
and most of them are flowering plants in the 
popular sense. Deciduous shrubs which we 
think would succeed well with you are Hy¬ 
drangea hortensis, Spiraea japonica Bumalda 
and the Flowering Currant (Ribes. san- 
guineum). If judiciously arranged and 
planted, the above should make a very use¬ 
ful and varied selection for the number em¬ 
ployed. 
2 253. Heather for a Bed. 
In your issue of 7th September I see you 
mention that White Heather is fashionable. 
Please oblige by giving the names of a few 
in your next issue suitable for a bed on a 
lawn. Also a few particulars as to cultiva¬ 
tion of the same. Name the Heather they 
call Lucky White Scotch Heather ; also name 
the enclosed Heather. (W. Brown, Mon¬ 
mouth.) 
The ordinary or common purple Heather 
of Scotland is Calluna vulgaris, and the 
Lucky White Scotch Heather is simply a 
white form of the above; in fact, any white 
variety which may be found growing on the 
moors amongst the ordinary purple Heather. 
There are at least nine white varieties which 
have received special names. Some of them 
may be creamy white and others pure white, 
but the chief distinction lies in the habit 
and growth of the plant. Calluna vulgaris 
alba, C.v. alba minor, C.v. alba pilosa, C.v. 
alba Serlei, and C.v. Hammondi are all 
white varieties differing in the length of the 
spike and the height of the plant. Other 
varieties are C.v. Alportii (crimson), C.v. 
flore pleno (double pink), C.v. hypnoides 
(rosy purple), C.v. Foxii (dwarf rose), C.v. 
rubra (red), C.v. argentea (with silvery 
foliage), and C.v. aurea (with golden varie¬ 
gation). The above is a very good repre¬ 
sentative collection of varieties of the Scotch 
Heather. There are several other Heaths 
which may be grown in the garden, includ¬ 
ing the Cornish Heath (Erica vagans) and 
its red variety, E.v. rubra, also E. mediter- 
ranea hybrida, E. lusitanica, E. ciliaris and 
E. carnea. A number of these are British, 
and all of them will grow under the same 
conditions as the Scotch Heather. If your 
ground is of a peaty nature, many of them 
can be grown without further preparation 
than digging or trenching it. If it is heavy 
clay or very dry and sandy or gravelly, then 
it would be necessary to take out the natural 
material to the depth of 2 ft. at least, and to 
fill up the space with peat. If you can get 
this quantity of peat, no further preparation 
will be necessary. The height of the plants 
as you obtain them from the nursery will 
give an indication of their usual height, ex¬ 
cept, perhaps in the case of Erica lusitanica, 
which may grow 6 ft. to 8 ft. high in course 
of time. The dwarfest is E. carnea, which 
should be at the edge of the bed, followed 
by E. ciliaris. The 'Scotch varieties of 
Heather are all relatively dwarf, or may be 
made so by cutting them down occasionally, 
or the better plan would be to get young 
plants by lavering for the renewal of the 
beds. The Heath you sent is Erica cinerea. 
2 254. Lifting Hydrangeas. 
I have two kinds of Hydrangeas, the com¬ 
mon one and H. paniculata grandiflora, 
which were planted out of pots in the 
spring. Can these be lifted and potted up 
again for the winter, so as to preserve them 
in good condition? If so, what is the best 
time to do it? The common Hydrangea is 
4 ft. high, and the other 3 ft. (F. Sea- 
grove, Oxon.) 
Both of the plants may be lifted with 
safety and potted as soon as the leaves have 
fallen. There is no necessity, however, for 
lifting H. paniculata grandiflora, as it is 
perfectly hardy and may remain in the 
same position and treated in different ways 
according to requirements. For instance, if 
you wish to keep it as dwarf as possible, 
you may cut down all the shoots within an 
inch or two of the base. These will sprout 
again in spring, and flower during August 
and September, as formerly. If you wish 
the plant to grow tall, only moderately 
prune, just removing the slender tips of the 
branches. It would be necessary to lift H. 
hortensis, so as to preserve the large buds 
at the end of the shoots. It should not be 
pruned, as you are probably aware. 
2 255. Flowering Climbers for Fence. 
Would you please advise me as to the best 
climbers, Roses and others '(Clematis, if 
possible), to give a fairly continuous flower¬ 
ing on a 6 ft. boarded fence, running north¬ 
east to south-west and facing north-west. It 
is partially shaded, but not overhung, by 
an Apple tree at one place. It gets the sun 
on it from about 2.30 in midsummer, but 
none at all in winter. The soil is of a 
fairly light sandy composition. (A. P., 
Kent.) 
There are several climbing Roses which 
we think would answer well for covering 
the fence you mention, including Gloire de 
Dijon, Longwo-rth Rambler, Reine Marie 
• Henriette, Bouquet d’Or, William Allen 
Richardson and Zephirine Drouhin. The 
last named is very fragrant and Longworth 
Rambler blooms very freely in the autumn, 
so that you would have a fair succession of 
flowers from the Roses. Amongst Clematis, 
we should recommend C. Jackmani and C. 
flammula, which usually flowers in Sep¬ 
tember. Other plants that would bloom over 
a more or less extended time are Jasminum 
nudiflorum (winter), J. fruticans (summer), 
Ceanothus Gloire de Versailles, Cydonia 
japonica, Forthsyia suspensa and Fuchsia 
Riccartoni. No doubt there are others which 
would succeed equally well, but the above 
fourteen will give a long succession and 
variety as well. Clematis montana is a very 
free spring flowering species, but it re¬ 
quires a considerable amount of space. If 
you cannot run it up to any great height, 
you must continue it horizontally along the 
fence. 
VEGETABLES. 
2256. Lifting Jerusalem Artichokes. 
Would you tell me how soon I ought to 
lift Jerusalem Artichokes and how to keep 
them for the winter? ('Mystery, Soms.) 
There is no real necessity for lifting 
Jerusalem Artichokes, as they are perfectly 
hardy and may be left in the ground till 
required if there is no other reason for lift¬ 
ing. In districts where the ground is liable 
to be frozen for a month or more on end, 
gardeners make a point of digging and 
storing a quantity where they can get at 
them during periods of frost. If you have 
reason for lifting them, you could do so 
some time in November after the leaves get 
blackened or more or less destroyed. Place 
the tubers in a small heap or ridge and 
cover them with soil, so as to keep them 
moist and fresh. In the event of frost you 
could, of course, be prepared to place some 
straw over the heap, so as to keep out frost 
and enable you to get at them at will. 
Another plan is to place them in layers with 
a layer of sand between every two of the 
Artichokes. 
2257. Asparagus Stems and Berries. 
I have a bed of Asparagus which is 
covered with berries. Will these do any 
harm and .should they be picked off ? When 
is the best time to cut down the stems? 
They have made good growth and at the 
present time the leaves are quite green. 
What is the best manure for covering them 
in winter? (A. Woodsall, Birmingham.) 
Cultivators, as a rule, do not trouble about 
removing the berries from their Asparagus, 
but leave them until the stems themselves 
are cut down some time in November. It is 
not desirable to cut down the. stems while 
they are still quite green as the crowns 
will continue to benefit until the foliage and 
stems wither away or turn yellow. That, 
then, is the time to cut them down. Horse 
manure, rather full of long litter than 
otherwise, would be the best material for 
covering the beds after the stems have been 
removed. It is not desirable to put on 
heavy cow manure, as that would keep the 
bed cold and wet, while horse manure or 
litter leaves the surface more open. A little 
soil is laid over the manure to keep it from 
blowing about. In March after the bad 
weather is gone, the litter may be gathered 
off with a fork, leaving the finer particles 
of manure to be pointed, into the soil by 
means of a fork, taking care not to injure 
the crowns of Asparagus. 
FRUIT. 
2 258. Cutting Over Strawberries. 
Should Strawberries be cut over in the 
autumn to get rid of the old leaves ? If so, 
what is the best way to do it? I am told 
the old leaves or tops should be cut off 
with a scythe, but should be pleased to have 
your opinion on this matter. (A. Davidson, 
Hunts.) 
It 'is the custom of some people to cut 
off the leaves of Strawberries in autumn 
with the object of getting a fresher appear¬ 
ance, but if done early it causes the plants 
to make a late and second growth and we do 
not see that it is really necessary. If you 
cut the runners down either side of the 
rows of Strawberries or around each plant 
and then hoe the ground, you can rake off 
all the runners and weeds, thus leaving the 
ground relatively clean. You can then 
spread a layer of manure between the rows 
of plants and this will feed the roots dur¬ 
ing winter. By doing this we think it will 
be of more importance and advantage to the 
Strawberries than if you were to cut off 
the foliage. 
2 259. Berries of Grapes Gone Red. 
I shall be much obliged if you will tell 
me the reason the berries of the enclosed 
bunch of Grapes have grown like this. A 
great many of the bunches were like the en¬ 
closed this year. (N. B., Perthshire.) 
The berries of your Grapes are shanked. 
You will notice that every berry that is red 
has a brown and withered-looking stalk— 
all connection between the root and the 
berries has thus been stopped. Shanking is 
due to a variety of causes, such as the de¬ 
struction of the foliage by insects or by the 
roots getting into a cold, wet or sour sub¬ 
soil. In the latter case the roots usually 
die in winter, and all the young ones have 
to be made afresh during growth every year, 
so that the Vines are considerably distressed 
in supplying the leaves, flowers and fruits 
with a sufficiency of food and moisture. 
Your Vines may be suffering from both of 
these ailments and they certainly are very 
bad with thrips. Every year, during the 
course of growth, you should keep a close 
eve upon them and see that they are not 
