JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER . 
December  28,  1899. 
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The  most  convenient  method  of  growing  Boses  under  glass  is  to 
cultivate  them  in  pots,  for  unless  a  structure  be  devoted  entirely  to 
these  flowers  there  is  difficulty  in  keeping  the  Eoses  constantly  free 
from  insect  pests,  and  with  other  plants  growing  with  them  a  proper 
ripening  of  the  wood  in  autumn  is  not  easily  obtained.  In  pots  they 
may  be  turned  out  in  the  open  air,  thereby  giving  the  plants  their 
proper  rest,  as  well  as  providing  room  for  other  subjects  when  the 
blooms  are  past.  The  best  time  to  do  any  necessary  potting— that  is 
in  the  case  of  established  plants — is  August.  That  time  being  past 
we  would  not  advise  meddling  with  the  roots  now.  Our  plants  are 
ia  the  open,  but  the  pots  are  plunged  in  leaves  as  a  preventiv  e  from 
severe  frost.  Each  pot  is  stood  on  a  tile  to  guard  against  the  damage 
of  worms. 
About  the  new  year  we  deal  with  the  plants  by  at  first  taking 
away  all  sticks,  and  pruning.  How  close  the  latter  should  be  done  is 
somewhat  guided  by  two  things,  whether  we  require  a  quantity  of 
blooms  or  a  lew  of  large  size.  In  the  latter  case  pruning  may  be  hard, 
that  is,  only  an  eye  or  two  of  each  shoot,  and  few  of  these  may  be 
left,  but  in  the  former  we  leave  6  inches  or  more  of  all  the  better 
grown  branches,  and  remove  the  weaker  ones  altogether.  Generally, 
the  Tea  Eoses  require  the  least  pruning,  and  the  rule  of  plants  outside 
is  followed;  the  stronger  the  plant  the  more  growth  should  be  left. 
Tie  the  principal  branches  to  sticks,  wash  the  pots,  and  then  put  them 
under  glass.  Like  Vines,  Eoses  should  be  brought  into  new  growth 
gradually.  A  vinery  or  Peach  house  with  the  contents  starting  is  just 
the  place  for  the  Eoses:  the  syringing  and  damping  necessary  to  the 
one  are  beneficial  to  the  other. 
Water  at  the  roots  should  be  avoided  for  some  time.  The  moist 
atmosphere  and  sap  stored  is  sufficient  until  the  shoots  are  about 
2  inches  long.  If  the  roots  be  soddened,  after  growth  will  not  be 
satisfactory.  Guard  against  draughts.  Front  air  i3  in  the  early 
stages  hurtful  to  Vines,  and  the  Eoses  will  not  require  it.  Keep  the 
latter  away  from  the  hot- water  pipes.  A  dry  air  brings  red  spider 
as  well  as  aphis,  and  checks  from  hot  to  cold  bring  mildew.  These 
three  ere  the  pests  most  troublesome  in  regard  to  Eoses  in  potp.  As 
the  leaves  develop  give  the  plants  ample  room,  and  with  this 
development  the  need  of  water  at  the  roots  will  go  on  in  a  like 
proportion.  It  is  not  easy,  in  fact,  to  overdo  Eoses  in  this  matter 
when  leafage  is  abundant.  Tie-out  the  shoots  as  they  grow,  and  from 
the  time  of  the  appearance  of  flower  buds  water  with  stimulants. 
Weak  soot-water  is  excellent.  This  may  also  be  syringed  on  to  the 
leaves  in  a  clear  state.  It  gives  a  dark,  healthy  green  colour  to  them, 
as  well  as  acting  against  the  attacks  of  green  fly. 
Eemove  the  Eoses  to  another  structure  if  at  all  shaded  by  the 
leaves  of  other  plants,  because  they  require  all  the  light  possible. 
The  growth  when  past  its  tender  stages  is  not  so  likely  to  beoome 
mildewed  ;  more  air,  therefore  may  be  allowed.  Stimulants  besides 
soot  water  are  given  to  develop  the  blooms  to  their  utmost  extent. 
No  one  manure  is  recommended.  Ail  gardeners  have  a  fancy  in  this 
respect,  but  if  we  can  get  liquid  from  the  farmyard  we  are  satisfied 
with  perhaps  an  occasional  pinch  of  guano.  Shade  when  in  bloom  will 
enhance  the  colour  of  the  flowers  as  well  as  tend,  of  course,  to  their 
lasting. 
After  blooming  we  stand  the  Eoses  in  the  open  to  ripen  the 
growths,  and  about  August  do  what  potting  is  required.  A  mistake 
is  often  made  with  Eoses  as  with  other  plants  that  have  been  forced — 
that  is,  they  are  turned  out  of  the  greenhouse  in  some  out-of-the- 
way  corner  and  neglected.  They  must  have  proper  attention  in  the 
matter  of  room  and  of  water ;  then  there  is  a  chance  of  their  use¬ 
fulness  being  extended  over  a  number  of  years.  In  potting  Eoses 
we  avoid  big  shifts.  Just  one  size  larger  pot  than  the  one  a  plant 
has  been  growing  in  is  best.  Soil  suitable  is  a  heavy  loam,  with 
bones  added ;  this  is  rammed  firmly  in  the  pots.  We  prefer  to  use 
less  lasting  manures  in  the  form  of  liquids  when  the  plants  are  growing 
freely. 
Most  Eoses  succeed  as  pot  plants,  but  some  better  than  others,  and 
those  we  enumerate  are  excellent  for  this  mode  of  culture: — Augustine 
Guinoisseau,  Baroness  Eothschild,  Captain  Hayward,  Caroline  Testout, 
Dr.  Andry,  Fisher  Holmes,  General  Jacqueminot,  Jeanie  Dickson, 
Kaiserin  Augusta  Victoria,  La  France,  Madame  Victor  Verdier,  Mer- 
veille  de  Lyon,  Mrs.  Sharman  Crawford,  Mrs.  John  Laing,  Prince 
Arthur,  Prince  Camille  de  Eohan,  Ulrich  Brunner,  and  Victor  Hugo. 
With  one  or  two  exceptions  the  above  are  Hybrid  Perpetuals 
which  provide  flowers  of  crimson  and  high  coloured  shades.  Of  Teas, 
with  their  delightful  perfume  and  delicate  tints,  the  following  are 
good  :— Anna  Olivier,  Bridesmaid,  Catherine  Mermet,  Ernest  Metz, 
Etoile  de  Lyon,  Innocente  Pirola,  Isabella  Sprunt,  Maman  Cochet, 
Madame  Falcot,  Madame  Hoste,  Madame  Lam  bard,  Madame  de  Watte- 
ville,  Marie  Van  Houtte,  Niphetos,  Perle  des  Jardins,  Eubens, 
Souvenir  de  S.  A.  Prince,  S  mvenir  d'uu  Ami,  Sunset,  and  The  Bride. 
— H.  S. 
POPPY  ANEMONES. 
The  fortunes  of  flowers,  like  those  of  men  and  women,  have  their 
ebbs  and  flows.  For  years  they  may  be  favourites  of  the  public ;  then 
the  reaction  comes,  and  they  are  in  the  cold  shades  of  unmerited 
neglect.  At  present  the  Anemone,  though  not  absolutely  neglected, 
is  comparatively  little  grown.  It  has  its  admirers,  but  these  are  few 
in  proportion  to  the  numbers  who  are  attached  to  other  flowers. 
Why  this  is  so  is  not  easy  to  say.  Its  beauty  is  great ;  either  in  the 
garden  or  as  a  cut  flower  it  lends  itself  to  the  adornment  of  our 
homes.  The  Poppy  Anemone,  as  A.  coronaria  is  called,  is  a  flower 
which  has  connected  with  it  associations  and  superstitions  of  which 
we  have  no  space  to  tell.  Our  pleasant  task  it  is  to  speak  of  the  flower 
from  its  horticultural  aspect ;  to  tell  of  its  value,  and  how  it  can  best 
be  grown. 
For  a  considerable  time  in  the  early  half  of  this  century,  and 
towards  the  middle  of  the  same  pieriod,  the  Anemone  had  many 
worshippers.  The  age  was  one  of  florists’  flowers,  and  the  Poppy 
Anemone  shared  with  the  Eanunculus  the  devoted  care  of  the  florists 
of  the  time.  It  was,  however,  the  double  varieties  to  which  they  gave 
up  their  time,  and  on  which  they  freely  lavished  their  care.  Times 
have  changed,  and  taste  with  them.  The  double  flowers  have  proved 
too  lumpy  for  our  ideas,  and  they  are  now  little  grown.  It  is  to 
the  single  flowers  that  we  must  mainly  look  if  we  are  to  have  a 
renaissance  of  the  Crown  or  Poppy  Anemone  in  the  future.  The 
writer  has  loved  them  all  his  gardening  days,  and  he  gains  much 
pleasure  from  their  brilliant  flowers.  It  is  not  easy  to  speak 
restrainedly  of  the  beauty  of  the  flowers.  Their  form  is  beautiful  in 
its  cup-like  shape,  together  with  the  central  boss  which  gives  it  the 
needed  finish.  The  colours  are  so  varied  that  one  can  hardly  exhaust 
their  tints,  shades,  and  combinations.  In  not  many  plants  have  we  so 
much  variety  in  this  respect.  Almost  pure  whites,  creams,  blushes, 
pinks,  scarlets,  crimsons,  purples,  and  blues  in  much  variety  occur, 
together  with  mottled  and  striped  blooms.  To  look  upon  a  bed  when 
its  flowers  are  open  in  the  sun  of  early  summer  is  to  behold  a  feast 
of  floral  beauty  whose  graces  are  heightened  by  the  charms  of  the 
pretty  finely  divided  foliage  which  accompanies  the  bloom.  "  It  seems 
needless  to  say  more  in  praise  of  the  Poppy  Anemone. 
As  already  alluded  to,  the  flowers  are  mostly  of  cup-like  form  ; 
but  the  taste  of  recent  years  has  set  in  in  favour  of  blooms  of  more 
informal  outline.  Impetus  has  been  given  to  this  change  by  the 
loveliness  and  effect  of  what  is  known  as  the  “St.  Brigid”  strain, 
which  we  owe  to  Mrs.  Lawretisou.  The  flowers  produced  by  this 
strain  are  of  great  beauty  and  size.  It  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that 
the  St.  Brigid  Anemones  surpass  all  others  in  their  value  in  the 
garden  or,  when  cut,  for  the  decoration  of  the  house.  They  last  long 
when  cut,  and  are  thus  invaluable  even  at  a  time  when  flowers  are  by 
no  means  scarce. 
One  advantage  the  Poppy  Anemones  have  over  some  other  flowers 
is  that  they  can  be  had  in  bloom  for  a  great  portion  of  the  year  by 
keeping  the  tubers  in  dry  sand  until  required  and  then  planting 
them  at  intervals  so  as  to  give  a  succession  of  flowers.  Planting 
should  begin  in  October;  this  month  and  the  end  of  January  being 
the  times  preferred  by  the  florists  who  made  a  speciality  of  the 
Anemone. 
For  the  purpose  of  its  cultivation  a  good  loamy  soil,  not  of  a 
clayey  nature,  will  answer  well,  but  one  which  is  rather  sandy  will 
suit  equally  well  if  enriched  with  decayed  cow  manure.  The  tubers 
ought  to  be  placed  with  the  crowns  about  2  inches  below  the  surface. 
It  is  sometimes  difficult  to  distinguish  the  crown  of  the  tuber.  It 
forms  a  knob-like  protuberance,  but  old  tubers  or  those  of  small  size 
do  not  always  exhibit  this  clearly.  Those  in  doubt  will  be  safe  in 
placing  the  tubers  sideways.  Florists  spread  some  decayed  leaves  over 
the  beds  to  keep  off  frost,  but  this  is  hardly  necessary  for  ordinary 
purposes. 
While  the  Anemone  is  a  true  perennial  it  is  apt  to  degenerate, 
especially  if  left  in  the  ground  after  the  leaves  have  withered.  It  is 
therefore  advisable  in  the  case  of  the  single  varieties  to  raise  a  -fresh 
stock  from  seeds  occasionally.  There  is  no  mystery  attached  to  the 
process,  and  detail  of  so  simple  an  operation  is  hardly  needed.  It  may 
be  said,  however,  that  seeds  should  be  sown  in  spring  or  as  soon  as 
ripe.  The  seed  ought  to  be  rubbed  among  dry  sand  before  sowing 
to  separate  it.  Seed  of  the  St.  Brigid  Anemones  sown  in  spring  will 
often  produce  flowers  the  same  year.  One  would  advise  the  grower 
who  has  secured  a  good  strain  of  Anemones  to  save  his  own  seed,  and, 
in  doing  so,  to  be  careful  only  to  take  it  from  the  best  plants.  The 
