534 
August io, 1907. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
It is by no means particular as to soil, 
provided it is fairly deep and well 
drained. Most plants in this class go 
down rather deeply, so that a soil of some 
depth should be selected for it, and if 
well drained, little else will be necessary 
than keeping the plant free from weeds 
during the summer. It does not particu¬ 
larly desire a rich soil, nor does it re¬ 
quire any staking. 
Propagation may be effected by seeds 
or division of large clumps, this being 
effected in spring. Cuttings of half- 
ripened wood would probably root readily 
in a cold frame, especially if covered with 
a hand-light or bell-glass to retain the 
moisture until roots are emitted. If this 
is done at once the young plants can be 
potted off separately when rooted in 
thumb pots, kept in cold frames, and 
planted out in spring. Owing to the 
dwarf habit of the plant, it is exceedingly 
well adapted for rockeries, thriving in 
situations that are relatively dry. It 
should be inserted, however, in pockets 
of the rockery where the roots can pene¬ 
trate deeply to be beyond the influence 
of drought in summer. 
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Herbaceous Borders. 
/ . ■ - 
There is nothing more attractive than 
a properly cultivated herbaceous border, 
as it can be made to supply regular quan¬ 
tities of flowers nearly all the year round. 
A herbaceous border requires careful 
study before it can be a success, and not 
only are proper preparations and plant¬ 
ing required at first, but it requires con¬ 
tinual attention to maintain its freshness 
and brightness. 
To be thoroughly effective, a her¬ 
baceous border ought to be a good length 
and breadth. In my experience the 
most attractive borders I have come 
across are at Innes House Gardens, Elgin, 
N.B., where they measure about 200 
yards in length by about 15 feet wide, 
with a Rose trellis as a background. 
This amount of ground cannot always be 
secured, but one should always avoid 
long, narrow borders. Width should be 
judged by the length of the border. In dry 
localities autumn is the best time for plant¬ 
ing, but in cold, wet districts it should 
not be done till the springtime. Arrang¬ 
ing a herbaceous border must be left to 
individual taste. Care must be taken to 
study the time of flowering, so that there 
will be a balance of bloom all over the 
border at each season. Care should also 
be taken in planting early spring flowers 
to see that they are not all in the front 
of the border. The beauty of borders 
will be longer maintained if the old 
flowers are picked off. Staking and 
tying should be done early, and the stakes 
ought to be as unobtrusive as possible. 
R. King. 
Wish aw. 
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A Good Way of Preserving Fruit. 
A very good way of preserving fruit is 
to put dry whole fruit into dry bottles, 
but with no sugar. Put the bottle in the 
oven until the fruit looks ready to burst. 
Have a kettle of boiling water ready. 
Cover the fruit with the water and tie 
down while hot. 
The Flower Garden. 
I cannot help thinking that everyone, or at 
least every housekeeper, should be compelled 
by law to keep his garden in good condi¬ 
tion. Quite near to my own domicile there 
are some deplorable samples which so of¬ 
fend my sensitive nerves that I am seriously 
thinking of covering my window panes with 
imitation “stained glass” paper, or better 
still, paint them over entirely and rely en¬ 
tirely upon artificial light. 
When 1 gaze upon my florally-decorated 
den, and compare it with the view that hits 
me in the face, as it were, every time I look 
out of the window, I feel a trifle sore. But 
that is not all. 'One of the non-gardening 
folk near me keeps his back yard as a play¬ 
ground for children and a dog. The chil¬ 
dren I do not mind. I was a child once 
myself. Moreover, they are in bed before 
I .reach home. Thank goodness ! A sigh of 
relief here, Mr. Printer. But that dog ! 
Sweet Peas. 
If it were not for the fact that my Sweet 
Peas are just getting into form I really 
think I should emigrate. Speaking of 
Sweet Peas, it is needless for me to point 
out that it was not I who won the Eckford 
and Sutton Cups at the National and the 
Tower’s Settle Bowl at Ulverston. I know 
Mr. Stevenson very well, but it is not true 
that I refrained from showing because I 
wanted to give Mr. Stevenson a chance. It 
certainly' makes me feel proud to think that 
the old theory respecting the southerners’ 
inability to grow Sweet Peas has been upset, 
yet I cannot help a sympathetic feeling for 
Mr. Thos. Jones, whose blooms, though very- 
strong, were not in tiptop form. 
By the way, there’s a new Sweet Pea 
grower that will have to be reckoned with 
in the future. My old acquaintance, Mr. 
A Basile, oame up with a few blooms and 
won first in every class in which he com¬ 
peted, including the Horace Wright Bowl. 
The giants of the past and present will need 
to strain every nerve if they mean to keep 
ahead of this past master in the art of show¬ 
ing. 
I observe Mr. G. F. Drayson has made 
some comments upon the newer varieties, 
but, personally, I am always chary of criti¬ 
cising new varieties until they have fairly 
got into their stride. The first crop of 
blooms is rarely reliable, and I must say 
this season’s batch are on the whole a some¬ 
what doubtful lot. I daresay I spent more 
time going through the Reading trials than 
the majority of visitors, but I should hardly 
like to give my views of any 1907 sort until 
I have thoroughly done them in my own 
garden. I might just point out that those 
growers who did not .get their John Ing- 
man, Helen Lewis and 'Countess Spencer 
from a reliable source, are in a queer street 
at the present time. A goodly number were 
disqualified at the National for showing the 
plain deep rose that is found in John Ing- 
man as the latter variety. Two of our local 
men were debarred from entering a special 
local class because one had no true Ingman 
and the other no true Countess Spencer. 
Respecting the trouble referred to by Mr. 
Dr-ayson, I regret I cannot help him. I 
have a suspicion that the disease is carried 
over in the seed. I have had a few plants 
go off at various times, but this year I have 
not had the trouble, and I fancy that the 
chalky nature of my soil has something t 
do with it. 
Lime is essential to Sweet Peas and drain 
age must be .good. It is quite possible tha 
overfeeding or eel worm is at the bottor 
of the trouble. Mr. Drayson should sen. 
a plant to an expert fungologist, as pract: 
cal growers rarely are capable of tellin 
one how to deal with diseases which ente 
plants by way of the roots. But enougl 
of Sweet Peas; let us get to work. 
Violas and Pansies. 
The hot weather that came in mid-Jul; 
proved a sore trial to Violas and Pansies 
and if good flowers are wanted in the au 
- tumn it is advisable to cut the plants bac' 
hard. The basal growths will come int 
flower very quickly. All herbaceous stuff ha 
come along grandly since the terrible wind 
departed, and he is a wise grower who give 
the plants some attention, apart from hoein; 
among them, which is a very importan 
item. 
Staking. 
Asters and other autumn flowers shouli 
be well supplied with stakes. 
Tying and Thinning Dahlias. 
Dahlias with me are a sorry lot, for the; 
have suffered terribly from earwigs. Th> 
bitterly cold weather until mid-July hek 
the plants back so that they became an eas_' 
prey to the myriads of earwigs that abounc 
this season. I have slaughtered thousands 
but there are still thousands more. How 
ever, my troubles are no concern of readers 
Let them give some little care to thei: 
plants. Tying and thinning of the shoot 
are quite a big item in Dahlia growing 
Disbud freely if first-class flowers art 
wanted. 
Bulbs. 
Bulb catalogues are beginning to appear 
and I need not point out the advisability 01 
sending in early orders as the best stuff i: 
always cleared early. 
Sowing Annuals. 
Annuals for spring flowering are bettei 
sown some time this month than later 
There are many beautiful things available. 
Seasonable Work, 
Feed Montbretia strongly, as it increasei 
the size of the flower spikes. 
Continue to layer Carnations and buc 
Roses. 
The transplanting of seedlings, perennial; 
and biennals should be proceeded with. 
Get all hedge clipping done as soon a.- 
possible. 
The water can must be in frequent use 
but never give plants water if they do not 
require it. 
Keep the hoe always at work. When ii 
is worn out buy another. 
The Fruit Garden. 
Most of the small fruits will have beer, 
cleared by now, so that the bushes may be 
heavily sprayed if troubled by insects or 
diseases. 
Ripening Fruit, 
Peaches and Nectarines will need watch¬ 
ing as they are better for being removed: 
just prior to being fully ripe. Plums and 
Pears are verj' late this year, so that it is? 
hardly necessary to advise the removal of 
ripe fruit. 
