January 4, 1913. 
THE GARDENERS’ MAGAZINE, 
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s 
water overhead, and the addition of a little 
shade for an hour or two, will prove of 
great assistance to them. 
Should green-hy or other insect pests 
attack the plants—which is rare if they 
have been kept steadily growing—they 
should be lightly fumigated, or sprayed 
with an approved insecticide, otherwise 
they will soon become disfigured. 
Kinds of Special Value for 
Bedding:- 
Antirrhinums are now frequently em¬ 
ployed for bedding, and are thoroughly 
reliable and effective for that purpose. The 
Tom Thumb, IntermcKiiate, and Grandiflora 
types may now be obtained in distinct 
colours, and are most effective when massed 
together, and their heights graded accord¬ 
ing to the position they occupy. All these 
should receive cool treatment, after being 
transferred into their final pots or boxes. 
Begonias of the fibrous-rooted type are 
in many places superseding those of the 
tuberous section. These are so reliable as 
showy bedders. and last the season 
through without a break in flowering, that 
few would ventvire to do without them. 
Magnifica, flo\vers bright carmine, and 
golden-yellow stamens; Crimson Bedder, 
flow'ers crimson, with beautiful crimson- 
bronze foliage; Fairy Queen, flowers sil¬ 
very-pink, with bronzy-green foliage ; Sem- 
perflorens, flowers white, shaded pink, with 
light green foliage, are all desirable varie¬ 
ties, forming dwarf compact plants. 
Begonia seed, after being sown, should 
not be covered with soil, but care should 
be taken to thoroughly moisten the soil be¬ 
fore the seed is sown, after which the pans 
may be covered with a sheet of glass, with 
a layer of damp moss on the top of the 
glass. Watering of the soil should not be 
necessary until after the seedlings appear, 
then water sparingly for a time, otherwise 
the tender seedlings wdll damp off. 
Dahlias of all the well-known types are 
easily raised from seed, germination tak¬ 
ing place very quickly. All these will 
bloom the same season in which they are 
raised, and form good-sized tubers for the 
following year. The double varieties are 
generally somewhat later in flowering than 
are plants that have been raised from cut¬ 
tings, but much depends upon the treat¬ 
ment they receive, and the position the 
plants subsequently occupy. 
The single and star varieties usually 
flower most profusely at an early stage of 
growth, and continue doing so until cut 
down by frost. Very beautiful and strik¬ 
ing varieties may be raised, equal in every 
respect to many of those that have been 
selected for distribution under names. 
Verbenas are general favourites, and 
may be raised from seed fairly true to 
colour. Care should be taken to procure 
new seed, or many of the seeds will fail 
to germinate. It is the rule with Some 
growers to sow the seed during the autumn 
as soon as it is ripe, or is obtainable from 
the seedsman, wintering the seedlings in a 
greenhouse or slightly heated frame. Others 
sow the seed as soon as possible in the 
New Year, growing the plants steadily on 
until required for bedding out, a practice 
we ourselves follow. At all times the soil 
in which the plants are growing shoidd be 
kept uniformly moist, otherwise the foliage 
will quickly become a prey to red spider or 
mildew. A genial temperature, with an 
abundance of air, is the proper conditions 
under which these plants should be grown. 
Unless the position or locality be very 
cold or exposed verbenas may be planted 
out fairly early in the season with safety, 
the plants quickly become established in 
their new quarters, and make good pro¬ 
gress before the very hot Aveather is ex¬ 
perienced, after Avhich they simply luxu¬ 
riate in the sun and heat, flowering most 
freely. The giant auricula-eyed is a very 
showy type, giving a wide range of colours, 
each flower having a large white eye, or 
centre; a bed of these always makes a very 
attractive display. Scarlet, white, blue, 
pink, and purple shades may also be grown 
fairly true from seed. For cutting pur¬ 
poses all of these are useful. 
Salvias as bedding plants are most showy 
and useful, blooming very freely. The 
old Salvia patens should find a place in 
every garden, however small; planted in 
conjunction with dwarf African marigolds, 
yellow calceolarias. Fairy Queen begonias, 
or Madame Crousse ivy-leaf pelargoniums, 
a very telling effect is produced, a combi¬ 
nation of colour not soon forgotten. The 
newer types of bedding salvias such as 
Glory of Zurich and Fireball for an 
early display, followed by Queen of the 
Scarlets, are alike invaluable where a bold, 
bright display of colour is desired. Care, 
however, must be taken to keep the plants 
Avell supplied with moisture, both at the 
roots and overhead, during spells of hot 
scorching weather, or the foliage will be¬ 
come permanently disfigured by red spider, 
a pest very difficult to eradicate when once 
it makes its appearance on these plants. 
W. Hedley Warren. 
Aston Clinton Gardens. 
THE BORDER LINE IN 
APPLES. 
An article upon dessert apples would not, 
in my opinion, be sufficiently comprehen¬ 
sive Avithout some reference to the seA^eral 
splendid A^arieties, AAdiich, under the gener¬ 
ally-accepted rules provided for the guid¬ 
ance of both exhibitors and adjudicators, 
are included in the culinary classes. That 
some such distinction is necessary all 
must admit, and its adoption has A^ery 
largely done aAvay with the quibbling and 
adA^erse criticism formerly so preAalent at 
large fruit exhibitions. 
In the dining-room, however, these rules 
may be generally disregarded, as all are 
free to exercise their own taste and opinion 
upon the contents of the different dishes, 
and some persons prefer a firm, rather 
sharp flavoured fruit to the very best of 
the dessert kinds. 
In some respects, this is fortunate nather 
than otherwise, as it enables large hand¬ 
some fruits to be displayed, though not of 
the highest quality, Avithout any serious 
thoughts being entertained as to their fit¬ 
ness for the purpose, and not unfrequently 
such elicit higher commendation than do 
their more delicately-textured compeers. 
Apples of this class are, as a rule, more 
vigorous in growth, and consequently 
somewhat hardier than the true dessert 
varieties, and thrive in the open as bush 
or standard trees, and mature crops almost 
as well as under more favoured conditions 
as to warmth and shelter. 
Twelve Good Apples for Either 
Dessert or Kitchen Use. 
Wliite Transparent.—Early in the sea¬ 
son, generally about the middle of August, 
this variety gives evidence, by its gradually 
assumed sulphur colouring and delicious 
aroma, that its qualities are developing. It 
is best consumed a few days after gather¬ 
ing, as it loses both colour and flaA^our 
rather quickly : but, taken at its best, it 
furnishes a pretty dish among the predo¬ 
minant red-tint^ ones then ripe or 
ripening. 
Cox’s Pomona.—A shoAvy, crimson- 
coloured fruit that keeps Avell, and has a 
A^ery agreeable flaAmir. 
The Queen.—A large and A^ery handsome 
variety, AAhich thriA^es Avell as a bush- 
trained tree, and is nob subject to canker 
or other diseases. This apple is fit for use 
as a dessert fruit from the middle of Octo¬ 
ber oiiAvards, and is much faAcured as such. 
Golden 8pire. — A peculiarly shaped 
fruit, that assumes a beautiful golden- 
yelloAV colour Avhile yet upon the tree, and 
its piquant flavour is much appreciated by 
some persons. 
Emperor Alexander.—This AAell-knoAvn 
apple requires but little describing further 
than that in former times it more fre¬ 
quently than any other formed the chief 
point of contention as to the class to Avhich 
it belonged. The soft Avhite flesh of this 
makes it passable for dessert. 
Peasgood’s Nonsuch. — Probably, the 
finest apple in cultivation, if form, size, and 
colour are all considered, and its qualities 
are very good. 
Charles Ross.—A smaller counterpart of 
the foregoing, and a particularly handsome 
fruit. 
Blenheim Pippin.—This famous Southern 
apple does not commend itself A^ery highly 
to Northern groAvers, as it is long in reach¬ 
ing the bearing stage, and a rather shy 
fruiter afteiAvards. Grown against a wall, 
upon the paradise stock, these defects are 
largely eliminated. 
Gascoyne’s Scarlet Seedling.—A beauti¬ 
ful crimson-coloured fruit, more especially 
so when pains are taken to ensure full 
exposure to the sun. In Northern parts 
it deserA'es the shelter afforded by a wall, 
Avhen in appearance and quality it is 
scarcely surpassed by any other kind either 
for cooking or dessert. 
Graham’s Royal Jubilee.—^Tlie A^alue of 
varieties that assume a rich yellow tint 
Avhen ripe can scarcely be over-estimated, 
and this is one of the best of such. It also 
possesses size, shape, and high quality, and 
remains good for a long season. 
Lady Henniker.—A fruit of rather an¬ 
gular outline, large, and generally richly- 
coloured. The tree is a strong grower, and 
a fairly constant cropper if means are taken 
to reduce the superabundant number of 
fruits in very favourable seasons. 
Galloway Pippin.—This is a very old 
A’ariety, haA^ing been cultivated in the pro¬ 
vince of GalloAvay for centuries under the 
name of Croft-an-Reigh. Here we rely 
upon it for late supplies almost entirely. 
This preferencemayl>e partly accounted for 
owing to the fact that more trees of it are 
cultivated than of any other variety. 
Apart from this, none others keep so 
sound and prove so reliable for the des¬ 
sert during the months of April and May. 
The fruits are shapely, of medium size, and 
bec*ome a beautiful yelloAV colour as spring 
advances, AA’hile for juiciness and spriteli- 
ness of flaA'Our it has but feAv equals in its 
sea.son. James Day. 
Galloway House Gardens, Wigtownshire. 
Olivia Gardeni.— By far the bes^ 
known of the clivias is C. miniata, which 
forms such a striking feature in our green¬ 
houses during the spring months. When 
not in bloom C. Gardeni greatly resembles 
C. miniata, but from a flowering standpoint 
it is far less showy. It is, however, valuable 
from the fact that it blooms towards the 
end of the year, when flowering plants are 
much less plentiful than they are during the 
blooming period of Clivia miniata. The 
flowers of C. Gardeni are borne in large 
umbels, are pendulous, and about a couple 
of inches long. Tliey are tubular, and in 
colour red and yellow.—W. 
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