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JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
April  5,  1900. 
Hardy  Flower  Notes. 
Heedless,  perhaps,  of  past  experience,  a  little  while  ago  we  might 
have  fancied  that  winter  had  gone  for  the  garden  year,  and  that  we 
were  fairly  over  the  threshold  of  spring.  Our  hopes  were  vain,  for 
frost  and  snow  have  again  returned  to  mock  our  dreams  and  to  retard 
our  flowers.  As  this  is  written,  when  March  has  almost  gone,  the 
snow  yet  lies  on  the  hills  which  bound  the  horizon,  and  nightly  frosts 
are  severe,  bringing  with  them  the  strain  on  plant  life  which  comes 
from  the  sharp  contrasts  between  the  bright  sunny  da>  s  and  the  keen 
air  of  the  night.  It  is  now  that  one  trembles  for  the  safety  of  som 
flowers,  and  longs  for  the  smiles  and  tears  of  April.  These  will  come 
in  due  time,  and  ere  this  is  in  type,  and  meanwh  le  we  must  be  content 
with  the  1  eauly  of  the  present  time.  After  all,  one  has  little  reason 
to  complain,  for  letters  from  some  not  so  far  away  tell  of  tardy  flowers, 
hindered  from  coming  at  their  usual  time  by  the  obduracy  of  the 
winter’s  movements.  When  one  hears,  as  to-day,  of  a  garden  in  which 
Crocus  Irpperati  has  just  opened,  and  where  only  one  Daffodil  has 
bloomed,  one  feels  that,  after  all,  one’s  lines  are  cast  in  pleasant  places. 
If  we  look  round  we  shall  see  no  meagreness  of  bloom  to  make  us 
grieve. 
Though  the  number  of  Itaflfodils  in  flower  is  not  large  as  yet,  the 
beauty  of  those  in  bloom  gives  us  some  delightful  moments  as  we  look 
at  them  and  strive  to  absorb  into  our  minds  their  graces  of  form  and 
colour.  It  is  the  Trumpet  Daffodil  which  now  calls  forth  our  admiration 
because  of  its  marvellous  attractiveness.  If  we  study  it  closely  we 
are  the  better  able  to  enjoy  its  graces  of  silver  and  gold.  The  tiny 
little  Narcissus  minimus  has  lasted  long.  Though  the  first  blooms 
show  signs  of  wear  and  tear,  those  which  have  succeeded  them  are  yet 
fresh  and  fair.  The  little  minor  and  lobularis  have  come  as  well,  and 
droop  from  the  stems  with  all  their  wonted  beauty.  In  its  appointed 
place  in  the  rock  garden  we  have  besides  the  rich  golden  yellow  of 
cyclamineus  major,  whose  long  trumpet  looks  so  quaint  because  of 
having  its  perianth  segments  turned  back  like  those  of  the  Cyclamen 
or  the  Dodecatheon,  instead  ot  standing  like  a  frill  around  its  base,  or 
half-enveloping  it  in  hood-like  form,  as  some  do.  The  first  blooms  of 
N.  pallidus  prmcox  grow  a  little  paler  as  age  begins  to  tell  upon  them, 
but  later  varieties  of  the  same  species  are  only  now  open  or  are  on  their 
way  to  join  in  the  pleasing  contest  for  the  palm  of  beauty  among  the 
rival  Daffodils.  The  Saragossa  Daffodil  is  again  among  the  earliest, 
and  gives  one  full  pleasure  by  its  opened  blooms  of  pale  yellow 
gradually  deepening  to  the  extremity  of  the  trumpets.  The  first 
deeper  yellow  bloom  of  that  fine  Narcissus,  Mrs.  H.  J.  Elwe-*,  is  only 
open  to-day,  but  the  shades  of  yellow  which  show  from  other  Trumpet 
Daffodils  tell  us  that  we  shall  not  have  long  to  wait  for  a  full  revelation 
of  the  charms  of  the  flower  of  the  spring.  The  glory  of  the  present 
lies,  however,  with  the  Crocus,  though  one  must  say  little  about  it 
now  in  view  of  what  w.as  said  by  the  writer  so  short  a  time  ago.  The 
glorious  golden-yellow  Crocus  yet  makes  a  brave  display,  and  it  has  a 
gallant  band  of  Dutch  Crocus  to  be  its  vanguard,  or,  better  st  11,  as 
more  appropriate  in  point  of  time  of  bloom,  its  rearguard.  Manv  of 
the  Crocus  species  have  lost  their  holiday  attire,  and  in  sober  green 
prepare  for  theii  long  rest  beneath  the  ground. 
There  is  much  delight  to  be  found  among  the  other  bulbous 
flowers.  To  the  bulbs,  we  who  love  to  have  early  flowers  in  the  open 
air,  owe  a  deep  debt  of  gratitude.  What  should  we  do  without  them 
to  make  our  gardens  bright  and  cheerful  ?  Their  hardiness  and 
their  charms  are  both  passports  to  our  affections,  and,  as  years  go  on, 
the  increasing  numbers  show  us  even  more  of  their  beauties  than 
the  few  bulbs  with  which  the  stock  may  have  begun.  Of  what 
shall  we  tell  first  in  the  necessarily  short  survey  of  the  hardy  flowers 
of  the  time  ?  The  SnowMropis  not  yet  over,  though  fast  hastening 
to  its  resting  time.  The  Glory  of  the  Snow  is  with  us  still  in  its 
several  forms.  Chionodoxa  Lucilise  has  as  its  companions  now  the 
deep  blue  C.  sardecsis, ;  the  fine  C.  Alltni  (if  this  is  distinct  from 
t’igantea  or  grandiflora,  which  I  rather  doubt)  ;  the  deep  coloured 
C.  Tmolusi,  whose  flowers  have  a  tinge  of  purple;  with  the  various 
forms  of  white  or  rose,  which  selection  and  seedling  raising  have 
given  us  from  different  species.  The  little  C.  nana  is  the  latest  and 
does  not  yet  show  colour. 
The  affinity  between  the  Scillas  and  the  Chionodoxas  is  shown  by 
the  presence  of  some  of  iheir  hybrids,  the  Chionoscillas,  with  flowers 
between  the  two,  but  in  some  ways  even  more  useful  for  distant  effect. 
The  Scillas  as  represented  by  blue,  whi  e,  flesh,  and  pink  varieties  of 
Scilla  bifolia  are  of  much  interest  too.  Scilla  sibirica  also  gives  its 
offerirg  at  the  shrine  of  spring  in  the  shape  of  its  pretty  flowers, 
wh  ch  spread  their  petals  to  the  bright  sun,  though  too  modest  to 
upturn  its  flowers  to  its  ardent  rays.  On  the  rockery  we  have  as  well 
the  pretty  blooms  of  the  Puschkinias,  with  their  pale,  almost  white, 
clustered  blooms  lined  with  blue.  The  latest  Snowflakes  join  in 
the  floral  offering.  Saxifraga  apiculata,  once  thought  crippled 
(or  the  year,  has,  alter  all,  given  us  a  good  display  of  its  pleasing 
sulphur-yellow  flowers,  and  near  at  hand  the  deeper  yellow  Saxifraga 
sancta  is  bright  with  the  smaller  blooms  it  gives  upon  their  uplifted 
stems.  A  change  of  colour  is  given  by  the  varieties  of  Saxifraga 
oppositifolia,  with  purple  or  white  flowe  s.  The  freest  flowerer  on  the 
dry  soil  of  my  garden  is  S.  rudolphina  compacta,  a  neat  dwarf  plant, 
as  indeed  are  all  the  others  of  the  same  section,  ; 
The  Winter  Heath,  Erica  carnea,  is  yet  a  mass  of  bloom,  and  ita 
attractions  for  the  bees  seem  to  try  to  their  utmost  the  loyalty  of  their 
attentions  to  the  Crocus  and  other  early  flowers.  In  Androsace 
carnea  we  have  an  enjoyable  little  early  flower  for  the  choice  rockery. 
Its  small  bright  flowers  are  exquisite  in  the  eyes  of  those  who  love 
these  fascinating  blooms,  which  have  their  wants  best  attended  to  in 
the  rock  garden  among  others  of  similar  size.  It  is  not  very  difficult 
to  grow  on  a  rockery  where  it  can  receive  full  sun,  and  also  a  plentiful 
supply  of  water  in  dry  weather. 
Perched  on  a  rockery  is  the  delightful  Ehododendron  jjrsecox,  said 
to  be  a  hybrid  between  dahuricum  and  ciliatum.  Its  peach-coloured 
blooms  are  always  welcome  as  the  precursors  of  the  other  dwarf 
Rhododendrons,  as  well  as  for  the  beauty  they  themselves  display. 
Would  that  the  frost  would  be  less  disposed  to  take  the  colour  from 
the  flowers,  and  would  not  cause  us  to  screen  them  from  its  power 
by  covering  at  night  with  a  hand-light.  Not  far  away  the  earlier 
flowers  upon  Lonicera  fragrantissima  look  a  little  sad  because  they 
have  not  received  similar  protection,  'fhe  Lenten  Roses,  too,  have 
suffered  somewhat,  and  many  are  useless  lor  the  year. 
Our  tale  is  thus  spam  of  threads  of  pleasure  and  of  disappointment. 
Truly  the  garden  of  all  seasons  is  a  picture  of  our  lives  and  their 
pursuits.  I  have,  perhaps,  been  too  mindful  of  the  disappointments, 
as  another  walk  in  the  garden  ere  the  closing  line  is  penned  shows 
flowers  other  than  those  of  which  I  have  ventured  to  speak.  It  ia 
always  thus — the  pleasures  of  the  garden  are  inexhaustible  to  those 
who  can  view  them  aright. — S.  Aenott. 
- — - - 
THe  Cnltnre  of  Primulas. 
Among  plants  that  produce  abundant  bloom  during  the  early  part 
of  the  year  Primulas  must  take  an  important  place.  They  are 
cheerful  and  attractive  in  colour,  producing  not  only  imposing  heads 
of  bloom,  but  large  individual  flowers,  especially  the  single  varieties  of 
P.  sinensis.  ’I'he  plants  of  both  single  and  double  sorts  are  readily 
raised  from  seeds.  The  latter,  however,  are  not  so  perfectly  double 
as  the  florists’  varieties,  these  being  named  sorts  and  annually 
increased  by  cuttings.  In  addition  to  the  single  and  double  forms  of 
P.  sinensis  there  are  the  Star  Primulas,  or  P.  stellata,  and  P.  obconica, 
the  latter  having  lilac  coloured  blooms,  the  former  blooms  of  various 
colours. 
As  regards  raising  these  varieties  from  seed,  the  method  and 
treatment  are  the  same,  as  is  also  the  subsequent  culture  throughout 
the  summer  and  autumn.  April  and  May  are  the  beat  months  for 
sowing  Primula  seeds,  and  if  the  strain  is  obtained  from  one  of  the 
leading  firms  who  make  their  culture  a  special  feature,  and  give 
unremitting  attention  to  the  task  of  maintaining  the  strain  at  a  high 
standard,  the  result  will  be  satisfactory. 
I  find  5  or  G-inch  pots  quite  as  suitable  as  pans  or  boxes  for  seed 
sowing.  The  pots  must  be  clean  and  well  drained.  Fill  them  a 
quarter  full  of  drainage,  employing  crocks  of  various  sizes,  the  larger 
at  the  base,  the  smaller  at  the  top.  On  them  spread  a  layer  of  damp 
moss,  then  fill  up  with  soil.  This  must  be  carefully  prepared.  Pull 
some  fibrous  loam  quite  small,  and  add  an  equal  quantity  of  sweet  leaf 
soil  passed  through  a  riddle  to  free  it  of  small  stones  and  sticks. 
Then  intermix  a  liberal  quantity  of  silver  sand  and  crushed  charcoal, 
thoroughly  incorporating  the  whole.  It  must  be  in  a  moist  condition, 
though  not  wet.  Fill  the  pots  to  the  rim  and  jar  the  soil  down  to  a 
level  mass,  half  an  inch  below  the  rim.  Water  the  soil  with  tepid 
water  applied  through  a  rosed  can,  allow  the  pots  to  drain  well,  and 
then  sow  the  seed  evenly  on  the  surface.  Just  cover  with  a  thin  layer 
of  sand.  Place  the  pots  in  a  temperature  of  65°,  and  plunge  if  possible 
over  some  bottom  boat. 
A  propagating  frame  is,  of  course,  the  best,  sinking  the  pots  to  the 
rim  in  cocoa-nut  fibre  refuse;  but  failing  this,  introduce  similar 
material  into  a  large  pot  and  sink  the  seed  pot  in  this,  standing  the 
larger  pot  on  hot- water  pipes  for  obtaining  the  requisite  heat.  Cover 
with  a  pane  of  glass,  and  over  that  a  sheet  of  paper,  removing  the 
latter  when  the  seed  germinates.  Plunging  the  pot  in  a  moist 
medium,  and  preventing  rapid  evaporation  by  protecting  the  surface 
soil  from  the  drying  influences  of  abundant  air,  are  the  best  means  of 
maintaining  the  requisite  moisture  in  the  soil  without  having  recourse 
to  watering  before  the  seed  germinates.  When  germination  does 
ensue  afford  plenty  of  light  to  prevent  the  seedlings  becoming  drawn, 
