768 THE gardening world. 
not get over much sunlight. We have 
not many spring flowers of a tall habit, 
and therefore may well utilise this hand¬ 
some subject. The seedling plants will, 
I think, flower after three years growth, 
but it is worth waiting, for a row along a 
rather dreary shrubbery border makes a 
fine bit of planting, and this method of 
growing from seed means sufficient plants 
to be really decorative. These -Crown 
Imperials will flower under partial shade 
of deciduous trees, while, if the ground 
around them be carpeted with Winter 
Aconites, one will follow the other with 
charming effect. 
F. Norfolk. 
-f+4- 
Aspidistras: 
Treatment. 
Aspidistra lurida or A. lurida variegata, 
which is the more ornamental of the two, 
the foliage being prettily marked with 
yellow and cream, is perhaps better 
known as the Parlour Palm. 
For room and window decoration it is 
without a rival, as it will thrive where 
other plants would scarcely do more than 
exist. But even the Aspidistra is fre¬ 
quently neglected, for it is at this period 
of the year we hear of many failures, the 
majority of which may be put down to 
over-watering and neglect to sponge the 
foliage. Moisture should on no account 
be given unless the plant requires it, and 
this will only be needed about once in 
ten days from now until March. Of 
course this will vary greatly according to 
the temperature of the room in which the 
plant is kept. 
When watering, plunge the pot to the 
rim in a pail of tepid water and let it re¬ 
main there for about twenty minutes. 
The foliage must be frequently sponged 
in order to remove all dust which is sure 
to accumulate, using clear tepid water 
and soap. If this dust is not removed the 
foliage not only becomes unsightly, but 
the plant itself is seriously affected. On 
cold and frosty nights the blinds should 
be left down even in rooms where fires 
are kept throughout the day. I have al¬ 
ways left my plants in the sitting room 
window on very frosty nights : in fact, one 
of them has never seen the inside of a 
greenhouse, and I would not wish for a 
better specimen. 
Repotting should never be done unless 
the plant really requires it, as it is a well 
known fact that Aspidistras do best in a 
pot-bound state. 
A little soot water occasionally is very 
beneficial, as it imparts a dark, healthy 
green to the foliage. 
J. M. 
- ++* - 
A Garden Ever in Bloom. 
Under the above name, Mr. H. B. 
Pollard, 12, Green Hill, Evesham, Wor¬ 
cestershire, sends out a very handy cata¬ 
logue of hardy herbaceous plants or bor¬ 
der flowers. The covers are narrow and 
the pages of the catalogue (10 in. by 7 in.) 
are folded along the middle so as to come 
between the covers and thus easily go into 
the coat pocket. 
Single Chrysanthemum Mrs. Redden. 
The rays of this variety are of a soft 
yellow, sometimes tinted with mauve and 
recurved at the tips, disbudded blooms 
measure 4 in. across. First-class Certi¬ 
ficate by the N.C.S. at the Crystal Palace 
when shown by Mr. H. Redden. It passed 
into the collection of Messrs. J. Peed 
and Son, West Norwood, London. 
Sunflowers for Food. 
Says the Hon. Maurice Baring, writing 
in the “Morning Post”:— “Sunflowers 
are grown in great quantities in Russia, 
not for ornamental or decorative pur¬ 
poses, but as food. You pick the head of 
the Sunflower and eat the seeds. You 
bite the seed, spit out the husk, and eat 
the kernel, which is white and tastes of 
Sunflower. Considerable skill is needed 
when cracking the husk and spitting it 
out to leave the kernel intact. This habit 
is universal among the lower classes in 
Russia. It occupies a human being like 
smoking, and is a pleasant adjunct to 
contemplation.” “That may be,” com¬ 
ments another contemporary, “but we 
cannot imagine philosophers and other 
thinkers ever being popular socially.” 
- G. w. - 
Prize Competitions. 
CENERAL CONDITIONS. —Competitors must 
write on one side of the paper only. Regular 
paid contributors to THE GA'RBeJSnG 
WORLD or other gardening journals are de¬ 
barred from entering, but occasional «on- 
tributors may compete. The name and ad¬ 
dress of the competitor must appear on each 
article sent for competition. The Editor’s 
decision is final, and he reserves the right 
to reproduce, in any wayjl any article or photo¬ 
graph sent for competition. The conditions 
applying to each competition should be care¬ 
fully read. 
WEEKLY 
PRIZES. 
A PRIZE OF TEN SHILLINGS will be give 
for the best paragraph or short article on any 
gardening subject, such as hints of practical 
interest to gardeners, notes on the propaga¬ 
tion or cultivation of flowers, fruits or vege¬ 
tables, eradication of pests, etc. The para¬ 
graph or article must not exceed a column, but 
value rather than length will be considered in 
making *he award. Mark envelopes “ Com¬ 
petition,” and post not later than the Monday 
following date of issue. Entries received later 
than Tuesday (first post) will be left over until 
the following week. 
Two prizes of 2s. 6d. will be awarded each 
week for the two best letters, not exceeding 
150 words, on any interesting gardening sub- 
jeot. 
RESULTS OF 
LAST WEEK’S 
COMPETITIONS. 
Some of the best papers in this competition 
are too long, and we desire readers to keep 
within a column. 
The prize in the Readers’ Competition was 
awarded to “ P. W. Bluett ” for the article on 
“ Roses for a Beginner,” page 756. 
1 
December 7, 1907. 
Manures 
And their Uses. 
A few years ago chemical manures were 
regarded by the majority of gardeners as 
a thing to avoid rather than to use; and 
though there may still be cases where the 
abuse of these earns for them a bad repu¬ 
tation, yet where intelligently applied 
there is no doubt they are of the greatest 
assistance to the cultivator, enabling him 
to supply the lack of any particular food 
or foods that plants may require. 
The three principal plant foods are: 
Nitrates, phosphates and potash, and in 
their commercial form they are best ob¬ 
tained as nitrate of soda and sulphate of 
ammonia, representing the nitrogenous 
food. Basic slag, bonemeal in its several 
forms, superphosphate of lime, phosphate 
of potash, and Chinchas guano, are 
among the best of the phosphatic 
manures, while to supply the potassic ele¬ 
ment we may purchase kainit, nitrate of 
potash, and sulphate of potash. 
In regard to their use, we must apply 
them according to the nature and re¬ 
quirements of the subject we are treating. 
If we wish to stimulate the growth of a 
plant a slight dressing of nitrate of soda 
or sulphate of ammonia will be found 
beneficial. If, again, we are desirous of 
improving the quality and fruiting pro¬ 
perties of our fruit trees, or wish to feed 
our ’Mums, or other flowering plants with 
something, which will not lead to sappy 
growth, then phosphate of potash, though 
expensive, will be found to repay itself. 
Chinchas guano, though a complete 
manure, yet possesses the phosphatic ele¬ 
ment in the greatest proportion, and is a 
splendid and safe fertiliser. 
Potash is supposed to improve the sugar 
juices of fruits and the scent of flowers; 
whether this be so or not, used in con¬ 
junction with a phosphatic manure it will 
be found to improve the quality of that to 
which it is applied. 
Nitrates, on account of their solubility, 
should only be used as required; they 
may be mixed with water, \ oz. to a 
gallon, or sprinkled very lightly on the 
top of the soil. 
Basic slag' and bonemeal, being slow 
acting, may be mixed with potting soil, 
while phosphate of potash and Chinchas 
guano may be used in water at the rate 
of 1 oz. per gallon. Another good liquid 
manure may be made by dissolving oz. 
each of nitrate of potash and phosphate of 
potash in a gallon of water. 
Kainit is perhaps the form in' which 
potash is used most largely in this 
country, but it is chiefly for agricultural 
purposes. Dry wood ashes are a good 
potassic manure, and may be mixed with 
potting soil, heavy soil in particular being 
benefited by their addition. Sulphate of 
potash may be used as a top dressing for 
Peach trees, fruit trees in pots, etc. 
Nitrate of potash may be mixed with 
water at the rate of 1 oz. per gallon. 
F. W. Sparks. 
- *+4 - 
Potato Pencils. 
Owing to the gradual disappearance of 
Cedar wood, German lead-pencil makers 
are using instead a composition chiefly 
made of Potatos. 
