THE GARDENERS’ MAGAZINE. 
the pots on the sill. We usually see 
the most effective displays in window-gar¬ 
dening arranged on this principle, tier ris¬ 
ing above tier, and when the front row 
consists of hanging plants and the hack row 
of fairly tall ones, a beautiful bank of 
flowers may be produced. But a very pre¬ 
sentable effect may be obtained from just 
a narrow balcony able to hold one row of 
pots only, and placed just sufficiently below 
the window-sill for the plants on the latter 
to show well above them, and yet have their 
pots concealed by plants of even medium 
height. 
A mistake that is often made in \idndow_ 
gardening of this latter kind is in putting 
the plants in pots which are too small, not 
only for their proper development of 
growth, but to enable them to stand up in 
some measure against the violence of the 
winds they will have to endure. Many 
think that a large pelargonium will grow 
in a forty-eight pot, and so it will, but it 
will need watering twice a day in hot 
weather, its growth will be restricted, its 
period of flowering shortened, and the size 
of its trusses lessened, while every little 
wind will blow it over, so that it leans on 
its neighbour, or, if the pot is standing in 
a saucer, blow it out of the upright, so 
that the pot has to be set level before it 
can ibe effectively watered, abusinesswhich, 
when multiplied by twenty or fifty, takes 
time, and is decidedly annoying when you 
have the can in your hand ready for 
watering. 
Still, though we should put our plants in 
larger pots ^an we would if they were to 
grow in a house, where the atmosphere is 
moist instead of excessively drying, it is not 
advisable to give them unduly rich soil, or 
the two things together will cause such 
vigorous growth that we shall have more 
leaf than flower, and this increased leafage 
wil loffer more surface to the wind. This is 
especially true of zonal pelargoniums. 
Alger Petts. 
RHODODENDRON CILIATUM. 
This is a pretty Himalayan species, 
hardier than many from that region. It 
forms a dwarf, compact bush, and produces 
its bell-fihap^ blush-coloured flowers in 
great profusion. In sheltered spots out of 
doors it is very effective, but this is not 
its only claim to recognition, as it forms 
a delightful feature in the greenhouse, 
and, furthermore, has proved to be of 
great value to the hybridist, as it has 
played a part in the production of many 
beautiful garden forms, particularly amone 
the tender kinds. 
The valuable R. prsecox resulted from 
the crossing of R. ciliatum, and the hardy 
R. dahuricum, which will often bloom out 
of doors in the depth of winter, while R. 
prsecox is not far behind it. This last- 
named was raised over fifty years ago by 
the late Mr. Isaac Davis, of Ormskirk, 
but its merits were some years in gaining 
recognition; indeed, when it was submitted 
to the Floral Committee of the Royal Hor¬ 
ticultural Society it only gained a Second 
Class Certificate. There is nothing to pre¬ 
vent it, even after this lapse of years, 
being put forward for the higher honour! 
R. ciliatum has, in conjunction with the 
primrose-tinted R. Dalhousdae, given us 
R. Countess of Haddington, one of the 
most popular of greenhou^ kinds. Asso¬ 
ciation with R. Edgeworthi yielded R. Prin¬ 
cess Alice, interm^iate in appearance be¬ 
tween its parents, but with the delicious 
fragrance of R. Mgeworthi itself. Since 
then a great many other ciliatum crosses 
have been raised. W. 
IRIS TINGITANA. 
This iris, which is a native of Tangiers, 
whence it was introduced into this country 
in 1872, resemlbles a glorified Spanish iris. 
The blossoms are very lovely, the standards 
being violet-blue, and the falls a delicate 
French grey, which colour is set off by 
the gleaming yellow of the central blotch. 
The flowers measure five inches across and 
with the faUs spread out ten inches. The 
wddth of the falls is about two inches, and 
the height of the standards is four inches. 
Although this iris has been known in 
England for over forty years, it is but 
little grown, and apparently very few are 
able to flower it satisfactorily. Numbers 
of letters appear from time to time in the 
gardening press deploring this species’ per¬ 
sistent refusal to bloom. These failures 
have not 'been confined to beginners who 
have but just taken up the cult of garden¬ 
ing, but many of our most noted horticul¬ 
tural experts have had to admit like ill- 
success. The late Bir Michael Foster 
stated that he had never flowered it in the 
open. Mr. Archer^Hind informed me that 
he had only flowered it once in thirty years ; 
the late Rev. Henry Ewbank, of Ryde, 
allowed that for fifteen years it had not 
bloomed .with him, and the late Mr. Wolley 
Dod said that he had grown it for twenty 
years without having flowered’ it, and 
wrote, ‘ ‘ I must confess myself quite at a 
loss to know what its requirements are,” 
while Mr. Irwin Lynch, in his “ Book of the 
Iris,” states that it is not worthy of cul¬ 
tivation, presumably by reason of its shy 
blooming qualities. 
In the face of all these records of failure 
in the growing of this iris, it is very satis¬ 
factory to be able to record an unqualified 
success. Some years ago, when Mr. Elwes 
paid me a visit, we got on the subject of 
tender plants, and he said he thought it 
useless to employ the same soil in this 
country as that in which they thrived in 
their native land. Plants which in their 
homes grow in sand would not flourish in 
that material in England, but required 
richer soil to make up for the change of 
climate. I carefully considered this view, 
and, having heard that Iris tingitana grew 
in sand, determined to take Mr. Elwes’s 
advice. I had grown this iris for some 
years with complete want of success, while 
it was left in the ground during the win¬ 
ter, but with an infrequent flower when it 
was lifted after the foliage had died down 
and replanted in the late autumn. I had, 
however, invariably grown it in sandy soil. 
In preparing the new bed a deep layer 
of manure was placed eight inches below 
the surface, and with the upper soil was 
mixed an equal proportion of old mushroom 
bed manure, so that it was extremely rich. 
The bulbs were put in at a depth of three 
inches, and completely surrounded by silver 
sand. The next year there were twenty- 
nine flower-spikes from thirty bulbs, and 
another year eleven out of twelve bloomed, 
and for years this iris has flowered 
superbly. However, this year there are 
no flowers, probably owing to the bulbs 
not ibeing properly ripened during the wet¬ 
ness and darkness of the preceding sum¬ 
mer. The bulbs are invariably lifted when 
the foliage has died down, and are kept 
in a dry drawer until the end of October, 
when they are replanted. If they are left 
until the middle of Novemlber the tops 
will have begun to grow, but this does, not 
appear to affect their blossoming. 
The blooming season of Iris tingitana is 
very erratic. Perfect blossoms are some¬ 
times produced as early as January, and 
from that date they flower until the end 
of April. Last year they were at their 
31,1911^ 
b^ in the third week of April 
time ago I received a letter from a ^ 
spondent asking if I would infornTw 
how I succeeded in flowering this iri* i 
sent full cultural particulars, and 
following year was glad to receive a let^ 
from him saying that he had followed w 
ii^tructions implicitly, with the result 
his iris^ flowered very well. AnvthiM 
that will tend to induce this lovely i» 
lay asides its shy-flowering habit ai he. 
come an abundant bloomer is well worth? 
of note. Wtndham Fitzhirbbit ' 
TRIAL OF POWDER 
SPRAYERS AT ASHTON 
Under the auspices of the Roval Agricil 
tural Society, a competitive trfal of hani- 
worked powder sprayers took place at thi 
National Fruit and Cider Institute, Lm 
Ashton, near Bristol, on Friday, May a 
For the probable reason that makers *hiw 
not paid as much attention to dry as to 
liquid machines, there were not many «. 
tries. Only six competed, and the jnllgw 
was in the hands of Mr. C. S. Martin, lato 
manager of the Toddingfon Orchard W 
pany, and Mr. Young, of Wisbech. 
For the purpose of the trial powdered liar, 
flowers of sulphur, and Bordeaux poiwkr 
were used, and the first appliances to k 
used were those furnished with wbeek 
Messrs. Weeks and Sons, Maidstone, entewi 
a somewhat complicated dry powder spraier 
mounted on two wheels, and so arrang^ tb 
it works automatically as it is drawn aloB^, 
and is turned by hand when it is stationary. 
The same firm also sent another machine if 
similar type, but travelling on one wheel. 
Messrs. F. Randell, Lim., Norlh Walsh», 
sent a machine of a quite different desigi. 
This sprayer was mounted on small wheelf, 
and it appeared very rigid when at work. 
The power is obtained by means of a pui^ 
the upward and downward strokes of whkk 
play their parts in the working of the mf 
chine. The hopper containing the powder to 
fitted with an agitator to keep it moving. 
Messrs. D. T. Gralton and Sons, Newleake. 
Boston, Lincolnshire, sent a machine whici 
distributes the powder by means of a lii 
arrangement, and made under the 
patent as their dry potato sprayer. Thew 
were good points about this grayer, but 
was not very portable, and it suffered for 
the want of an agitator. 
Having caicfully tested the wheeled apM* 
ratuses, the judges proceeded to t^t tk 
merits of the knapsacks, and eventually ^ 
the first prize to one of German make 
the ‘‘ Grun,” and exhibited by 
lenkamp and Co., 85, Farringdon ..tr^ 
London, E.C. This machine is furjusa" 
with a round tank, and is easily earned 
the back. The adjustments for regulau^ 
the amount of powder distributed are simp 
and ingenious, and powder that is lumpy 
ground fine before it is sent out 
Messrs. Filter and Co., 22, 
Cannon Street, London, E.C., to(^ « 
prize with a machine called the Tii » 
which is largely used in Indian tea 
and rubber plantations. This sprayer, 
is carried on T ’ ' 
Another compe 
Messrs. H. Haiijeu -<*11^ 
London, E.C. It has a 
a bellows lever, and an arrangement ^ 
graduating the amount of ni^ck 
buted. There did not seem to be v ly ^ 
to choose between the three P 
sprayers, and any of them would 
for dry potato spraying in ffarde^,^ 
phuring strawberries, ro£ 
1 earlyjj 
March the plants will be 
for thinning: After completing 
tion, hoe the ground between ^ —u-n' tk* 
apply a light dressing of soot 
plants are damp.—W. Messenger, 
stone Park Gardens. 
