April  2,  1896. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
309 
when  decorating  the  tables  with  plants,  lent  from  the  Hall  gardens  for 
the  purpose,  and  it  is  only  fair  to  add  that  by  many  of  the  club  members 
the  paper  was  admired  as  much  as  the  plants. 
But  with  refined  aristocratic  tastes,  and  even  those  of  the  present- 
day  decorator,  the  case  is  very  different,  especially  in  the  adornment  of 
an  evening  dinner  table,  when  attempts  are  generally  made  to  dispense 
with  as  much  as  possible  that  is  artificial,  replacing  this  with  some¬ 
thing  more  natural.  Green  moss  is  universally  admitted  to  be  the  best 
article  for  effectually  hiding  pots  used  in  dinner-table  decorations,  but 
here  arises  another  difficulty.  Many  decorators  not  having  this  resource 
at  hand,  as  suitable  moss  does  not  grow  everywhere,  some  other  means 
have  then  to  be  resorted  to.  Perhaps  “  0.  M.”  had  this  in  mind 
when  advocating  the  paper,  but  could  not  something  else  be  used  ?  I 
have  found  pieces  of  cork  bark  reared  loosely  round  the  pots,  with  bits 
of  light  greenery  stuck  in  the  interstices  to  be  effective,  without 
that  degree  of  artificial  gaudiness  which  characterises  the  use  of 
coloured  paper,  besides  being  an  easier  way  of  attaining  the  desired  end. 
If  “  0.  M.”  has  not  tried  this  means  he  may  perhaps  be  induced  to  do 
so,  and  would  not,  I  think,  be  disappointed.  The  rest  of  “  0.  M.’s”  able 
article  I  shall  not  attempt  to  criticise  ;  indeed,  I  should  not  have  been 
induced  to  pen  these  notes  at  all,  had  it  not  been  so  highly  flavoured 
with  coloured  paper. — Critic. 
CUCUMBER  DISEASE. 
A  Phenyle  Failure. 
When  one  thinks  of  the  comparative  ease  with  which  Cucumbers 
grow  and  come  to  perfection  under  ordinary  circumstances,  and  even  in 
some  instances  without  what  are  usually  considered  necessary  con¬ 
veniences,  it  is,  to  say  the  least  of  it,  disappointing  and  disheartening 
to  have  had  every  known  requisite  likely  to  lead  to  success,  and  yet  have 
to  be  condemned  as  something  worse  than  useless. 
The  Cucumber  disease  first  showed  itself  with  us  in  a  particularly 
virulent  manner  during  the  winter  of  1894-95,  plants  put  out  in 
September,  1894,  dying  in  the  following  November,  after  producing 
abjut  half  a  dozen  fruits  amongst  them.  Previous  to  this  we  had  been 
troubled,  but  not  so  seriously.  In  the  winter  of  1893-94  we  lost  all  but 
one  plant,  which,  grown  on  the  extension  system,  eventually  covered 
the  whole  roof  and  fruited  well,  giving  us  an  abundant  supply  of 
Cucumbers. 
At  the  beginning  of  last  year  Little’s  soluble  phenyle  was  tried  as  a 
preventive.  This  was  used  according  to  directions — a  wineglassful  to  a 
gallon  of  water,  applied  to  the  soil  before  the  plants  were  placed  in  it, 
and  twenty-five  drops  to  a  gallon  were  used  to  growing  plants.  Daring 
the  summer  the  roots  of  these  plants  appeared  to  swell  into  a  dense 
fibreless  mass,  yet  we  had  fair  fruits  until  August,  mainly,  I  think, 
through  weak  fortnightly  doses  of  phenyle. 
At  the  beginning  of  last  August  we  sowed  as  usual  for  winter  work  ; 
the  houses  were  thoroughly  cleansed,  the  soil  and  everything  connected 
with  the  future  crop  undergoing  a  thorough  disinfection  with  phenyle, 
and  we  looked  forward  to  an  abundance  of  fruit  of  good  quality  ;  but 
despite  the  continued  use  of  phenyle,  we  had  to  clear  out  one  house  in 
the  beginning  of  December.  This  was  a  house  of  Telegraph.  A  later 
lot  of  Lockie’s  Perfection  managed  to  keep  growing,  and  bore  a  few 
fruits  till  the  new  year.  Since  then  they  have  been  an  eyesore,  and 
refused  to  grow.  We  may,  I  suppose,  be  allowed  to  call  this  only  a  partial 
failure,  but  nevertheless  we  are  far  from  being  satisfied  with  the  result. 
Phenyle  has  had  a  thorough  trial,  having  been  used  without  stint 
according  to  directions,  and  at  one  time  it  was  thought  the  difficulty 
was  at  an  end  ;  but  we  have  not  yet  conquered  the  enemy,  and 
should  like  to  know  what  the  phenyle  adviser  of  the  Journal  of 
Horticulture  has  to  say  on  this  case. — By-the-Sea. 
SAXIFRAGA  STRACHEYI. 
This  plant  will  only  give  disappointment  if  anyone  attempts  to 
cultivate  it  as  a  hardy  flower  ;  it  is  by  no  means  new.  Nicholson,  in  his 
“Dictionary  of  Gardening,”  says  it  was  introduced  from  the  Western 
Himalayas  in  1851  ;  it  is  growing  here  in  quantity  in  various  parts  of 
the  gardens,  but  I  have  never  had  a  spike  half  as  good  as  the  one  figured 
on  page  280,  and  presume  that  it  was  grown  under  glass.  Occasionally 
in  sheltered  positions  it  opens  a  few  flowers,  but  in  most  instances  it  is 
absolutely  disappointing,  as  its  flower  spikes  come  out  of  the  old  leafless 
stems  as  if  afraid  to  get  away  from  the  ground  and  look  more  like  a 
species  of  fungi  than  flowers  ;  the  slightest  frost  turns  it  brown,  and 
there  is  an  end  of  it.  The  foliage  appears  after  the  flowering  is  over, 
but  is  killed  as  soon  as  severe  frost  come?,  being  in  this  respect  much 
more  tender  than  S.  crassifolia  or  S.  cordifolia.  One  of  the  prettiest 
varieties  is  S.  ligulata ;  it  is  of  smaller  growth  than  S.  cordifolia  and 
others,  and  has  the  merit  of  being  much  lighter  in  appearance.  The 
flower  spikes  are  much  the  size  of  the  one  figured  on  page  280,  and  of  a 
deep  pink  colour  when  first  expanding,  fading  to  a  softer  tint  with  age. 
The  foliage  is  somewhat  tender  if  severe  frost  occurs,  but  does  n>t  all 
disappear  like  that  of  S.  Stracheyi.  Both  kinds  are  in  flower  here 
now  (March  28th),  being  much  earlier  than  others  of  this  class. — 
W.  H.  Divers,  Belvoir  Castle  Gardens,  Grantham. 
[Relative  to  the  hardiness  of  Saxifraga  Stracheyi  we  find  that  an 
expert  on  hardy  flowers  communicated  the  following  note  to  the  Journal 
of  Horticulture  in  April,  1883  : — “  This  is  perhaps  the  finest  of  the 
Himalayan  Saxifrages,  at  least,  of  those  introduced  to  our  gardens.  It 
is  a  great  pity  indeed  that  it  will  not  quite  endure  our  climate  without 
some  protection,  such  as  is  aff  >rded  it  by  a  frame  ;  but  its  beautiful 
thyrsoid  trusses  of  flowers  are  far  more  handsome  when  they  expand  in 
a  cool  house.  I  am  sure  it  is  a  very  excellent  plant  for  the  decoration  of 
the  cool  greenhouse,  while  the  graceful  curvature  of  the  primary  and 
secondary  branches  of  the  spike  is  very  effective.  I  have  flowers  on  one 
spike  which  measure  1J  inch  across,  pure  white,  with  red  glistening 
discs  and  red  stamens.”! 
GROWING  CEL03IAS. 
Now  is  a  good  time  to  sow  C.  pyramidalis,  aurea  and  rubra,  when 
the  plants  are  required  to  bloom  in  the  autumn.  They  are  not  grown 
in  as  many  gardens  as  they  deserve  to  be,  and  this  perhaps  may  be 
attributed  to  the  many  worthless  varieties  that  are  sent  out  under  the 
above  names.  We  are  fortunate  in  having  a  good  strain  of  Celosia 
pyramidalis,  and  we  make  it  rule  to  save  seed  from  none  but  the  best 
varieties,  and  by  so  doing  we  have  seldom  a  worthless  plant  in  our 
collection.  We  sow'the  seeds  in  pots  about  the  beginning  of  April,  and 
plunge  them  in  a  bottom  heat  of  80°  until  they  have  germinated,  after 
which  they  are  removed  to  a  shelf  near  the  glass  in  the  propagating 
house,  where  they  remain  till  they  are  ready  to  be  pricked  off  into  pots 
or  pans.  We  use  a  compost  of  equal  parts  of  loam,  leaf  mould,  and 
peat,  with  a  good  sprinkling  of  river  sand  added,  and  the  pots  or  pans 
are  again  plunged  in  bottom  heat  for  a  few  days  until  the  roots  have 
taken  to  the  soil. 
We  then  remove  the  plants  to  the  shelf  near  the  glass,  keeping  them 
well  watered  and  syringed  until  they  are  placed  in  4-inch  pots.  The 
compost  employed  then  is  equal  parts  of  loam,  leaf  mould,  peat,  and 
cow  manure,  with  a  dash  of  rough  silver  sand.  They  must  not  be  allowed 
to  become  root-bound  at  this  stage  or  they  will  flower  prematurely. 
If  practicable,  we  keep  the  pots  half  plunged,  and  when  this  cannot  be 
done  we  stand  them  on  a  moi9t  bottom,  which  saves  watering,  and  also 
benefits  the  plants.  When  dwarf  specimens  are  required  we  pinch  the 
points  out  of  the  plants  when  they  have  grown  3  or  4  inches  high,  but 
we  seldom  practise  this  system.  We  allow  the  plants  to  grow  vigorously, 
and  can  always  manage  to  keep  a  good  succession  of  bloom  by  employing 
pots  of  various  sizes  for  flowering  the  plants  in.  The  sizes  range  from 
6  to  10  inches,  but  the  latter  should  only  be  used  when  large  specimens 
are  required.  An  8-inch  pot  we  find-  most  serviceable  for  ordinary 
plants. 
The  Celosia  grows  best  in  a  light  house  with  a  warm  moist  atmo¬ 
sphere,  as  few  plants  are  more  subject  to  the  attacks  of  red  spider,  and 
they  must  be  carefully  watered  at  all  times,  never  allowing  the  soil  to 
become  dry.  Excessive  watering  should  be  equally  guarded  against  to 
prevent  souring  the  soil,  as  few  plants  will  show  signs  of  ill-health 
sooner  than  these  when  over-watered.  When  the  pots  are  full  of  roots 
the  plants  are  greatly  benefited  by  weak  liquid  manure  applied  at  every 
alternate  watering. 
They  should  always  be  supplied  with  clear  water  before  applying  the 
liquid  manure,  as  the  roots  are  easily  injured  by  strong  supplies,  and 
the  water  must  always  be  about  the  same  temperature  as  the  house  in 
which  the  plants  are  growing.  After  they  begin  developing  their 
feathery  inflorescence  they  can  be  gradually  hardened  before  being 
placed  in  the  conservatory,  where  they  will  continue  for  a  long  time  in 
bloom.  Their  culture  is  simple,  and  when  well  grown  they  have  few 
equals  either  for  their  flowers  or  as  decorative  plants. — PRACTICE. 
EDGINGS  TO  GARDEN  PATHS. 
Well  made  and  neatly  kept  paths  are  an  adornment  to  any  garden. 
If  the  edging  to  the  path  is  not  in  keeping  with  the  trim  character  of 
the  path  itself,  and  in  harmony  also  with  the  surroundings,  then  the 
actual  result  is  not  so  satisfactory  as  it  might  be.  In  the  pleasure 
grounds  where  grass  will  grow  no  edging  can  equal  this  in  appearance. 
Under  trees,  or  on  sites  that  are  not  favourable  to  the  growth  of  grass, 
other  edgings  would  be  more  suitable,  such  as  Irish  Ivy,  Berberis 
aquifolium,  Euonymus  radicans  albo-marginatus,  and  Erica  herbacea. 
All  are  evergreen  and  amenable  to  close  annual  pruning  if  required, 
and  each  has  a  pleasing  appearance  during  the  dull  days  of  winter. 
As  an  edging  plant  for  an  unfavourable  site  the  first  named  is  perhaps 
the  most  suitable  ;  its  growth  is  quick,  and  provides  in  a  short  time 
a  dense  edging.  The  month  of  March  is  perhaps  the  most  suitable 
period  to  plant  any  of  those  named. 
The  preparation  of  the  soil  is  important;  deep  digging  and  manuring 
are  essential  details  of  success.  If  the  soil  is  heavy  and  retentive  a 
compost  of  decayed  leaves,  vegetable  refuse,  and  road  grit  would  render 
valuable  aid  in  inducing  the  free  formation  of  roots  the  first  year. 
In  the  kitchen  garden,  or  alongside  Rose  and  herbaceous  borders, 
grass  is  not  always  desirable.  In  the  former  no  edging  can  equal  Box 
when  properly  planted  and  methodically  attended  to.  If  it  is  badly 
planted  to  begin  with,  and  improperly  managed  afterwards,  no  one  can 
be  surprised  if  Box  as  an  edging  falls  into  disrepute.  If  the  path  is  an 
incline  the  edges  should  be  on  a  “  running  level.”  The  Box  itself  is 
too  often  planted  in  pieces  much  too  large.  A  properly  planted  edging 
of  Box  ought  not  to  be  more  than  2  inches  high,  and  half  as  much  in 
width  at  the  base,  be  perfectly  straight,  and  exhibit  no  “swanks,”  as 
hollow  places  in  the  edge  are  termed.  Tae  welfare  of  the  edging  when 
properly  planted  for  the  next  tea  years  at  least  rests  entirely  with  the 
person  in  charge. 
