I^lay  31,  1900. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER,  455 
Seasonable  Hints  on  Florists’  Flowers. 
Auriculas. 
It  is  with  somewhat  of  a  siokinj?  heart  that  I  write  what  may  be 
almost  the  farewell  to  the  flowers  I  have  so  many  years  loved  and 
'Cultivated.  They  were  amongst  those  which  in  very  early  days  I 
regarded  as  great  favourites,  and  although  there  have  been  times  when 
from  one  circumstance  or  another  I  have  been  obliged  temporarily  to 
abandon  their  cultivation,  yet  I  have  recurred  to  them  again  and 
again,  and  during  the  past  thirty  years  they  have  had  a  very  high 
iplace  in  my  regard.  I  never  had  so  large  or  good  a  collection  of  them 
as  during  this  time,  but  there  has  been  always  one  great  drawback, 
there  was  no  one  in  my  immediate  neighbourhood  who  knew 
anything  about  them,  and  it  is  but  dull  work  to  cultivate  a  flower 
when  you  can  show  them  to  no  one  who  appreciates  them  but  your¬ 
self.  Some  people  ask  to  see 
your  collection  perhaps  as  a  mark 
of  politeness  or  curiosity,  and 
when  they  have  seen  them  they 
are  ready  to  exclaim  how  pretty 
or  how  curious,  but  are  unable  to 
enter  into  any  discussion  of  their 
merits.  And  now,  alas !  failing 
eyesight  makes  it  imperative 
upon  me  to  abandon  the  culture 
of  the  Auricula.  It  is  a  flower 
whose  beauty  depends  upon 
points  of  form  and  colour,  which 
can  only  be  thoroughly  appreci¬ 
ated  by  one  whose  sight  is  good. 
My  collection  is  consequently 
now  very  much  reduced,  and  will 
have  to  pass  to  some  one  who 
will  be  better  able  than  I  to 
appreciate  and  to  cultivate  them. 
This  is  a  grievous  trial  for  any 
■connoisseur  of  some  fifty  years 
standing. 
Regarding  Auriculae,  they 
have  been  very  late  in  flowering 
this  year,  and  should  soon  be 
repotted.  A  simpler  form  of 
compost  is  that  which  is  prefer¬ 
able,  and  is  now  generally 
followed  —  namely,  one-half  of 
turfy  loam  about  a  year  old, 
-one  -  quarter  well  -  rotted  cow 
manure,  one-quarter  leaf  mould, 
with  a  good  sprinkling  of  sharp 
white  sand.  The  tap  root  should 
be  shortened,  offsets  which  show 
any  sign  of  root  should  be  re¬ 
moved  and  planted  in  small  pots, 
being  ranged  round  the  edges 
where  practicable.  In  doing  this 
they  should  be  firmly  potted, 
watered,  and  then  placed  in  a 
close  frame  in  a  cool  spot  for  a 
few  days,  being  subsequently 
placed  in  the  frame  where  they 
are  to  remain  for  the  summer. 
These  frames  should,  of  course, 
face  the  north,  in  a  situation  Fig.  122. 
clear  of  the  drip  of  trees  and 
shaded  from  hot  sun.  Attention 
must  be  given  to  cleanliness,  and  if  aphides  are  present  at  all  the 
plants  should  be  cleansed.  Perhaps  the  best  plan  is,  before  the 
process  of  repotting  commences,  to  place  them  in  a  cold  frame  or  pit  and 
give  them  a  fumigating  with  one  or  more  of  MacDougal’s  turners.  These 
are  a  wonderful  improvement  upon  the  old  plan  of  fumigating  with 
tobacco  paper  or  cloth,  and  save  the  operator  all  the  unpleasantness  of 
the  old  system.  Alpine  Auriculas  are  not  of  so  delicate  a  constitution 
as  the  edged  varieties,  and  do  not  perhaps  require  such  careful  handling. 
They  are  also  more  inclined  to  give  offsets,  so  that  a  collection  is 
sooner  got  together.  They  have  the  advantage,  too,  of  being  much 
more  easily  raised  from  seed,  and  anyone  who  wishes  to  raise  new 
varieties  has  the  satisfaction  of  knowing  that  if  they  do  not  come  up 
to  the  standard  required  they  will  make  excellent  border  plants.  , 
Carnations  and  Ficotees. 
Those  who  have  wintered  these  beautiful  flowers  in  pots  and  have 
planted  them  out  in  beds  will  now  be  preparing  for  the  next  operation, 
•that  of  staking  them.  As  far  as  I  can  judge,  they 'have  wintered  well. 
and  if  they  have  not  been  coddled  will  not  mind  the  bitterly  cold  east 
wind  which  we  are  now  experiencing.  I  see  some  of  the  shoots  are 
spindling  up  for  bloom,  which  I  think  somewhat  premature,  and  when 
this  is  the  case  stakes  should  immediately  be  put  to  them.  Here 
again  we  find  the  more  correctly  coloured  and  beautifully  shaped 
flowers  giving  place  to  others  more  irregular  both  in  colouring  and 
form,  but  at  the  same  time  better  adapted  for  the  ornamentation  of 
the  garden.  Very  few  persons  now,  I  imagine,  grow  and  bloom  them 
in  pots;  but  what  pleasure  plants  so  grown  were  to  one  in  earlier 
days  !  and  I  question  if  anyone  who  follows  the  modern  system  can 
experience  the  delight  which  came  to  those  who  watched  the  develop¬ 
ment  of  each  flower  with  its  beautiful  and  regular  marking. 
Gladiolus. 
It  is  too  soon  to  do  much  with  the  beds  of  these  bulbs,  and  all  one 
has  to  do  is  to  keep  them  free  of  weeds  and  the  surface  gently  stirred. 
I  have  seen  that  the  bulbs  of  the  Lemoinei  section,  which  have  now 
L^lia  purpurata  Littleiaxa.  (See  V<^ge  453.) 
been  in  my  border  seven  or  eight  years,  are  rapidly  pushing  their  way. 
It  will  be  well  to  see  before  the  shoots  become  too  long  that  supports 
are  applied  to  them,  as  if  left  to  themselves  they  are  very^apt  to  be 
broken  off  by  the  high  winds. 
Fansiesg 
Here,  again,  a  revolution  has  taken  place;  the  old  Show  Pansy 
has  been  superseded  by  what  are  called  the  Fancy  varieties.  These 
originated  abroad;  but,  like  many  of  our  florists’  flowers,  attained 
thdr  highest  perfection  amongst  our  home  fanciers.  The  flowers  are 
of  great  size  and  brilliancy,  and  very  irregular  and  fantastic  in  their 
markings,  but  they  are  quite  as  regular  in  form  as  the  old  Show 
varieties,  and  certainly  more  hardy  in  their  constitution.  I  do  not 
think,  however,  that  the  south  of  England  is  favourable  to  growing 
them  in  perfection,  our  summers  are  too  hot  and  dry ;  and  to  see 
them  in  perfection  one  must  travel  to  Scotland,  or  to  the  cool  glades 
of  Yorkshire,  where  climate  and  soil  are  both  in  their  favour.  The 
beds  should  now  be  kept  clear  of  weeds,  and  where  _increa8e  is  desired 
