10 
mouldy and rot and mature ones root pre- 
maturely. If loose, then shallow wooden 
boxes where the corms can be spread in 
single layers are the best receptacles. As 
regards 
Diseases there are several fungoid para- 
sites; one quite common in this country 
appears on the leaves during the summer 
as brown spots. Sometimes the plant 
grows through the attack, but often the 
spotted area spreads, the leaves turn yel- 
low, and the whole plant dies. On lift- 
ing in the autumn the corm is found to be 
either a rotten mass. or else spotted with 
’ what I believe is the resting stages of the 
fungus. I find that, except in severe 
cases, if the spots are picked out with the 
point of a knife and the wound dusted 
with a mixture of equal parts of quicklime 
and sulphur the corm grows away in the 
spring, and often a choice variety is saved 
in this way. The best preventive (cure 
there is none so far) is to grow the plants 
on a fresh site if possible every year, and 
clean the old sites with a crop of, say, 
cauliflower or early potatoes; at least, 
such has been my experience. Wireworm 
and the daddy grub or leather jacket when 
troublesome must be trapped in the usual 
way with a few bits of rape cake attached 
to a piece of copper wire and just buried 
in the soil. Gladioli may be raised from 
Seed by anyone having the patience to 
wait two or three years for a spike of 
bloom. Both seed and spawn are best sown 
outdoors under hand lights in April, cover- 
ing with an inch of gritty soil. The re- 
sulting cormlets need identical treatment 
to the large corms, only they can be 
planted much more thickly and only two 
inches deep their second year. Seed can 
be bought or saved by one’s self if artificial 
pollenating be performed, cultivation hav- 
ing enlarged the parts of the flower to such 
an extent that it is rare to get a capsule 
from flowers le.v entirely to the visits of 
insects. I give now a 
Selection of Good Varieties which can 
be bought at a reasonable figure, and 
which I have had an opportunity of prov- 
ing :— 
Reds, Roses, Whites. 
Grand Rouge Glaire de Feu Hilda (Burrell) 
L'lneeudie Mme. Poiret Dora Craven 
Prof. Maxime Pyramide (Burrell) 
Cornu Pasteur Cygnet (Burrell) 
lona (Burrell) Liley Shakspeare 
Martial (Burrell) Opale 
Bizarre vars. Yellows, 
Comedy (Burell) Diademe 
Hesperide Bernice (Burrell) 
Parure Casilda ss 
Amitie R. Milner (Kelway) 
Rajah 
This is, of course, a very incomplete list 
of the finest varieties. It only pretends 
to give two dozen, which average not more 
than 10d. each. None are more than 2/, 
and some 5d. and 6d., but all are very 
beautiful W. C. But. 
Subscribe to 
THE 
ustralian rardener, 
3s. 6d. per year. 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER, 
i) ac, 1, 190 i 
REVIEWS OF BOOKS. 
THE FORES!t FLORA OF NEW 
SOUTH WALES. 
By J. H. Marpen. 
Part V. of this exhaustive work is to 
hand. As with the preceding numbers, 
so with this, we have nothing but praise 
to bestow upon it. The information 
upon the trees of our forests is full of 
minutest detail, botanically, in narrative 
descripticn and in economic value. The 
average Australian is nothing if not prac- 
tically commercial when he takes an in- 
terest in his surroundings, and Mr. Maiden 
is taking great care to meet the require- 
ments of economists. Opinions upon the 
merits and demerits of the wood and cther 
economic values are set out from a num- 
ber of authorities who have dealings in 
the business of values of timber and its 
varied uses. : 
Each subject is illustrated in all essen- 
tial particulars for identification, and in 
all respects the work is maintaining the 
high standard of excellence with which it 
was first introduced. 
“ VEGETABLES AND FLOWERS FROM SEEDS 
IN TROPICAL, SEMI-TROPICAL, AND TEM- 
PERATE CLIMATES.” 
This is a new book published by Sutton 
and Sons, of Reading, and printed by 
Spottiswode in their most elegant fashion. 
Nothing too good can be said about the 
get up of this book as a work of the prin- 
ter’s art, the letterpress and iliustrations 
being splendid. What is true of the 
printer’s art is in measure deserved by 
the information imparted. The first sec- 
tion of the book deals witn vegetables, 
and we venture the opinion that any gar 
dener, who may be the merest tyro, coula 
read the information set out there, and 
with only the exercise of the commonest 
garden variety of intelligence, supply his 
kitchen with vegetables all the year round. 
The book tells him everything he need be 
told, the only thing lacking is that it won’t 
grow the vegetables itself, although, to 
tell the truth, the pictures of some of the 
vegetables, potatoes, to wit, would make 
any Irishman’s teeth water. A good fea- 
ture in the compilation is that the proper 
months are set out for sowing the seeds in 
different countries This information 
may not be strictly accurate, because of 
the great variation of climate, but gener- 
ally speaking, where spring, summer, au- 
tumn, and winter are not specified by 
particular months the information is re- 
liable enough for general purposes. 
After giving a great lot of detail upon 
individual vegetables, this section of the 
book is concluded with a chapter upon 
“The Chemistry of Garden Crops.” The 
subject is treated from an English point 
of view, naturally enough, but the general 
information contained regarding the con- 
stituent properties of soils and their treat- 
ment is just as good for the Southern as 
for the Northern Hemisphere. The same 
properties prevail all over the world, the 
only difference being in their proportions 
of chemical elements and the influence of 
atmospheric conditions. The whole ques- 
tion is summed up in the author’s re- 
marks that what the soil lacks naturally 
must be provided for artificially. This 
surely is true of every garden in the world 
since the time of Eden, though what our 
first gardener parent knew about the busi- 
ness does not appear in ancient literature. 
A. certain charm about the information, of 
a practical character is what one migne 
call out-of-the-way knowledge—that is, 
remarks that one does not meet with in 
the usual run of garden literature. For 
instance, in the chapter on celery we are 
told that tie ideal sou for growing celery 
is from an anthill. The insects are said 
to place every separate atom in position 
by means of a secretion which enhances 
the fertilising quality. We venture to 
think that not every gardener knew that 
before, and we may further risk the idea 
that it is not every gardener who would 
care to try the experiment of carting an 
ant-hill to his celery patch, especially if 
the hill were from the species commonly 
known in Australia as bull ants. A nip 
from one would make him swear off ant- 
hills and tneir adaption to celery growing 
for ever. If any kind of anthill would 
serve the purpose there are some places in 
Australia where gardeners could make « 
small fortune out of this delightful es- 
culent. We refer to the northern regions 
where the industrious ants build their 
hills as big as small houses. 
The second section of the book deals 
with flowers. The first striking feature 
to the searcher after knowledge is the 
method adopted of placing the subjects in 
alphabetical order. This is a distinct ad- 
vantage to the amateur cottage gardener 
not learned in the intricacies of plant 
orders. He can set aside any ignorance 
on this score, and at a moment’s notice 
turn up all the information he requires 
without any other education further than 
the ability to say his ABC and a 
smattering of reading. Everything is 
studiously simple, and yet full of informa- 
tion for scholars. Almost every flower 
in common cultivation is illustrated and 
so beautifully designed from nature that 
it is impossible to mistake an identifica- 
tion. In addition to the alphabetical 
order of the book, there is a complete in- 
dex, and nothing wanting to assist the 
“amateur gardener in making his home 
beautiful. The firm has a world-wide re- 
putation for their seeds, and their book is 
a well deserving medium for their busi- 
ness. 
We should welcome with delight another 
such book dealing with the hard-wooded 
perennial plants, shrubs, and ornamental 
trees. 
“THE PRINCIPLES OF GARDENING 
FOR AUSTRALIA.” 
By C. Boaur-LurrMann. 
This book to hand is very timely, the 
only surprise being that it has not ap- 
peared long before this. Australian gar- 
dening in something like a standard book- 
form is sadly lacking in Australia, and 
this artistically got up little volume, at the 
