THE GARDENERS’ MAGAZINE. 
t 
❖ 
HANDSOME DECORATIVE PLANTS FROM ❖ 
SEEDS.-I. ❖ 
M«n>- plttiiU of a hit;hly dworative and 
uai'ful nature may he wlvantageoiialy rawetl 
frtmi and nowadays the choice is so 
large, and the variety of plante so luime- 
roiiH, that a comparatively few kinds only 
can Ih» dealt with in the space at command. 
These notes are not written as an argu¬ 
ment against the orthmlox method of rais¬ 
ing plants from cuttings, or by other re- 
cognuied metlwHls of propagation, but in 
the hope that they may prove helpful to 
thi»se who are unable to rai^ plants for 
home ami house decoration in the usual 
and, more t»ften than not, complex way. 
t)ne great advanUge in raising this class 
of plants from .seeil is that with ordinary 
care they are thus very easily grown. 
Mmt of the subjects mentione<l may be 
raised in gentle heat, such as may be ob- 
taim'<l in a hotbed, by placing a frame 
over a mixture of fresh stable manure and 
leaves in about equal parts, prepar^ in 
the usual way, early in the season. Under 
such conditions tlie seedlings soon appear, 
and may be ‘potte<I off as they become ready 
tor that operation, using a cc mpost some¬ 
what <H)arser in texture than that in which 
tile seed was sown. Great care must be 
exercised in preparing the soil and pots or 
pans lieforehund. .Vll the nnieptacles should 
iH« scrupulously clean, and tlio soil, when 
mixcHl, bo in a friable condition—that is, 
Celosias. 
Celosia plumosa affords beautiful plants 
for conservatory decoration, making a veiy 
effective display during the latter p^t ot 
the summer and in early autumn. These 
require a fairly high temperature during 
their growing period, and liberal treatment 
in the way of feeding, but should not be 
grown in large pots, or the plante be¬ 
come coarse rather than elegant. When 
the flower spikes or plumes are about half 
t'xpanded the plante may be gradually 
hardened off, and afterwards, if a shel¬ 
tered sunny spot out of doors oan ^ 
given them for a week or two, the bril¬ 
liancy of the colouring will be very con- 
sklerably heightened. This is a plan we 
ourselves have followed for many years, 
and have invariably found the plante much 
improved by this treatment, and lasting 
much longer in good condition. 
Coleus. 
Ooleiis hybrids, the seeds of which, if 
sown early, will produce large plants dur¬ 
ing the first season, are rightly classed 
with the most beautiful and useful of our 
soft-wooded ornamental foliaged plants. 
From seeds many new and distinct varie¬ 
ties may be raise<l. To obtain good plante 
by midsummer seeds should be sown as 
early in the year as possible in pans of 
light rich soil, covering the se^s but 
January 25 , 1913 . 
POT CULTURE OF APPLES 
AND PEARS. 
I was much interested in the pithy and 
timely article on this subject by iMr. Jam^ 
Hudson V.M.H., and also in the excellent 
photogr^hs of the two pot-grown trees bear- 
ing fruiite, in the issue of the Gardeners’ 
Magazine for December 14. 
In many gardens there is ample room for 
pot-grown apples and pears. All specimens 
so grown are under the direct control of the 
cultivator therefore, while the flowers are 
open, they can be protected from frosts. 
I was glad to see pear Durondeau and 
apple Kibsiton Pippin included in Mr. Hud¬ 
son’s list. Both are excellent varieties for 
the purpose, and amateur cultivators should 
not fail to grow them. 
Where more substantial houses cannot be 
spared for the accommodation of fruit trees 
in pote, cheap ones made of wood may be 
erected in sections. They are easily and 
quickly put up, and as readily taken down. 
They are useful for many kinds of plants in 
the autumn time, as well as fruit trees when 
the latter should be placed in them. It is 
necessary to keep these houses well painted; 
then they will last m-any years. 
Some years ago I inspected a rather large 
wooden orchard ihouse, in Which peaches and 
nectarines were planted permanently and 
g^wn as standards. Apples, pears, and 
cherries in pots wexe plao^ in this struc¬ 
ture in due season, and a most interesting 
collection they formed. The roof was so con¬ 
structed that it could nie removed, or at 
least, the glazed lights, and thus the trees 
were exposed at will to the weather. 
G. B. 
ix«i, DO III a maoie c«naiwui.--vuuv IB, shading until germination 
.th.‘r wt.t •>" dry. A comi^ ..f about place. Prick off the seedlings as 
I'qiial parte of fibrous loam, leaf-inoiild, and 
|)eat, with a gotxl addition of silver sand, 
will answer admirably in which to sow the 
ok 
three-eighths 
p<its and pans to witliin an inch or so of 
the rims. In the case of very fine seeds no 
covering will be necessary beyond a very 
light sprinkling of fine sand; larger seeds 
may Ih' covered with about a quarter of 
jin inch of soil, not more. 
Abutilons and Browallias. 
Hybrid abutilons are of very easy cul¬ 
ture, and the seeds, if sown early, will 
produce plants that will bloom profusely 
as they are large enough to handle into 
CLEMATIS BALEARICA. 
This is the earliest of all the clematis 
family to flower in the open air, coming 
into bloom in the south-west before Janu¬ 
ary is out, and a blossom or two is gene¬ 
rally discernible before the New Year has 
or two stoppings the resulting growths 
quickly liectime studded with butls, and 
bear blossoms, which, when fully expanded, 
open to thrive or more inches in diameter. 
For house and conservatory use Uicse are 
invaluable. During the second season of 
growth these-— if too large for indoor use- 
may be use<l wstJi a^lvantage as dot plante 
in the flower garden and shrubberies. 
Bniwallias are extremely pretty, free 
flowering, and useful, affording a display 
of colour during the autumn and winter 
months. B. elata grandiflora — really a 
half-hardy annual — is a useful variety for 
greenhouse cultivation, producing very 
other pots or pans, and then keep grow- commenced. Although its whitish flowers, 
ing in a brisk heat until the roots have spotted in the interior with purple, can- 
not be said to be particularly showy, it is 
a valuable plant on account of its early 
blooming. It is a very rapid grower, 
cending to the eaves of a house, a height 
of over twenty feet, in a few years, while 
in a friend’s garden a plant has clam¬ 
bered up into a variegated tulip tree to 
a height exceeding twenty-five feet; m 
fact, it may be considered almost as 
a tree climber as Clematis montana. The 
flowers are borne in great profusion, havmg 
as companions few open-air blossoms be¬ 
sides the winter jasmine, Chimonanthus 
fragrans, the witch hazel, Prnnns I^avidi- 
ana, Iris stylosa, and Christmas roses. The 
fealiery, grey seed-vessels, though perhaps 
scarcely so effective as those of the common 
Traveller’s Joy (Clematis vitalba), have a 
_... 4-1,^ on+iimn 
scojk. th^ whole through a quarter- ^ ^ 
>«ch or threceiKhtha sieve, ami fill the ^ 
temperature. 
Coleus thyrsoideus is an extremely 
pretty free-flowering species, growing to a 
height of eighteen inches or two feet, the 
branches terminating in racemes of bright 
blue flowers during, the winter and spring 
months, at which time the plante will do 
well in an intermediate temperature; in 
fact, too much heat at this stage is de- 
^ ^ cidedly injurious to the flower spikes, 
during the current year. The seedlings Ppon all favourable occasions plenty of air 
usually very vigorous, and after one may be given, avoiding cold draughts. This 
coleus may be fed with artificial manures 
pretty frequently, and an occasional 
watering with clear soot water will aid in 
keeping the foliage green and healthy after 
the pots are well filled a-ith roots, ~ 
xi * . r’Y'i.. .. Paring pretty appearance during the autunm 
plenty of bright sunshine. During^the 
summer and early autumn we have grown 
C. thyrsoideus and poinsettias in the same 
structure, giving both of these precisely 
the same treatment with unvarying suc- 
W. Hedley Warren. 
Aston Clinton Gardens, Tring. 
This clematis is often confounded wi 
C. cirrhosa, which hears flowers of the same 
size and colour, but with no spots m tne 
interior. This, however, is much later m 
blooming, its first blossoms expanding 
as the last flowers of C. balearica are ta - 
ing. C. cirrhosa is by far the oldest occ- 
pant of our gardens, having been 
freely flowers pale blue in colour. The Iris nn,;. i x garaens, naving -- 
plants grow to a height of about fifteen been producing ite‘flowers for Lveral^w^k^^ country more^than 
inchea, but should dwarfer plante be and will continue for some time. It deserves 
thought desirable, the young growths may to. he grown more extensively. In cold dis-' 
be stepped as often as may be thought tricts it requires shelter, and the foot of a 
desirable. By making occasional sowings ^all, either that of a dwelling-house. 
this variety may be had in flower during x^ preferably, a greenhouse, is an ideal posi- 
the greater part of the year. B. speciosa light soil to grow in. 
major is an excellent winter-blooming 
variety, producing large blue flowers, much in an oomi thrive 
ffe^per in colour than B. data grandiflora, be 'T 
If the strain u. a good one. B. Fi«.n, Wych Cross Pl^ G “dewf 
hundred years ago, whereas C. 
has not been known for much over o _ 
hundred years. Both species should r 
doubtedly" be planted in gardens, as 
extend the flowering season of their fa ^ 
from the winter days almost ^ 
time that the Mountain^ Clematis (C. 
tana) spreads its veil of ivory-white 
blossoms in the late spring. 
Wyndham FitzhebbeRT. 
South Devon, 
